Here & Now
by Koyasha
Summary: Kendra finds herself in the alternate universe from The Wish episode season 3 and gets caught up with some familiar faces
1. Default Chapter Title

Prologue  
  
A lone teenager walked down the streets of Sunnydale with only street lamps and the moonlight to guide his way. Gripping his backpack tightly, the teenager pondered to himself why the new librarian had insisted that he clean up the mess in the library. I mean, I only knocked over two shelves accidentally, thought the teenager. It's not like I did it on purpose or anything.  
The rest of the street was deserted. Ever since that whole bizarre incident at the Bronze a few weeks ago, people were less and less inclined to leave their houses at night. This adolescent had not been at the Bronze that particular evening, but there were rumors circulating Sunnydale High School that many people had been killed that night, even though the police and newspapers said that it was simply some sort of gang war.  
I really wish that Willow and Jesse hadn't ditched me, thought the teenager dejectedly. They could have at least helped me out with sorting the books. And the way the new librarian kept on yelling at me whenever I did something wrong, with that British accent, was so damn annoying!  
Rounding a corner, the teenager suddenly felt as if he was not alone. Halting, he listened to the night. He thought that he almost heard the sound of feet scuffling.  
"Hello?" called the teenager. "Is anybody there?"  
As soon as the words had left his mouth, the teenager thought to himself, Stupid, stupid, stupid. Now I'm just asking for it.  
Thinking that he heard something behind him, the teenager turned around to find only his shadow. Sighing with slight relief, the teenager was about to continue on his route when someone spoke.  
"Kind of late to be out, don't you think?" said a calm, masculine voice.  
The teenager turned back around to see the silhouette of a man with his back to him. The individual had short blond hair and wore black pants and a black jacket.  
"Dylan?" asked the teenager. "Is that you?"  
The individual turned around and smiled. "Xander! How's it going?"  
Xander smiled at Dylan and walked towards him. "Hey man, ever since that Bronze thing I heard that you were missing presumed..."  
"Dead?" Dylan finished the sentence. "Yeah, well I've been pretty busy."  
"With what?" asked Xander, amazed that he was seeing one of his friends again.  
"Oh you know. A little of this, a little of that." Dylan's face suddenly changed into that of a vampire's game face and he flashed Xander his fangs. "And a whole lot of blood."  
"What the-" But before Xander could finish his sentence, the vampire lunged at him, knocking both of them to the ground. Dylan was just about to sink his teeth into Xander's neck when Xander shoved him off of him with all of his strength. Getting to his feet, Xander took off. He ran as fast as he could, but Dylan was still able to catch up to him. Dylan jumped on Xander again, but this time Xander went crashing into a dumpster.  
Searching for anything to defend himself with, Xander's hands came upon a piece of jagged wood. And just as Dylan jumped at him again, Xander positioned the wood so that Dylan impaled himself in the heart with it. The vampire's body exploded into dust.  
When it was all over, Xander merely sat in the garbage panting, while his brain tried to make sense of what just happened.  
Just as his brain began to process the sequence of events, four strong arms grabbed hold of him. One vampire on either side was holding him. Before he could say anything, like lightning, a fist rammed into his gut. His legs gave way underneath him and he slumped in the vampires' grip. His head was hanging, but he was still conscious.  
Suddenly, a delicate hand was placed under his chin, which lifted his head up. Xander then came face to face with a bald-headed vampire that smiled down at him.  
"You're courage was impressive." said the bald vampire with the scariest sneer that Xander had ever seen. "You shall be the first."  
As the bald vampire sunk his teeth into Xander's neck, a small guttural cry escaped Xanders' lips. And just as he thought that he was going to die, a warm liquid flowed into his mouth.  
Then, darkness... 


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One  
  
The scent of incense that burned in the dimly lit room increased the ominous atmosphere of the current surroundings. The shadow of a woman danced upon the walls as the candlelight flickered with every one of her movements. She sat cross-legged facing a pot of burning magical ingredients. Her arms were thrust up towards the heavens along with her eyes. She appeared to be in a trance and was chanting in an old, forgotten, gypsy language.  
As her chanting grew more intense, her body began to convulse and a bright, green light emanated from the burning pot. The green light turned into a huge green cloud, which flew away from the pot and hung in midair a few feet away from the woman.  
She yelled out one final word and there was a flash of blinding light. The woman collapsed into unconsciousness with a quiet thud.  
For a brief moment, it was if time stood still. Nothing moved in the small room. The green cloud had disappeared, but underneath where it once had been was the body of an adolescent. This teenager's long black hair was styled into a braid flowing down her back. Her skin was dark and even darker under the candlelight.  
The teenager opened her eyes and surveyed her surroundings cautiously. Sitting up, her first instinct was to bring her hand to her throat. Satisfied with finding nothing wrong, the teenager eyed the unconscious woman lying on the floor.  
Standing up, the teenager walked over to the woman prudently and checked for her pulse. As soon as the teenager's fingers touched the woman's neck, the woman's eyes flew open. In a swift motion, the woman was standing, consequently knocking over the teenager.  
As soon as the teenager got a good look at the woman, she spoke two words. "Ms. Calendar?"  
The older woman looked at the teenager in confusion and bewilderment. "How... how did you know my name?"  
The teenager also looked perplexed. "This is very strange. The last thing I remember was fighting... and then..."  
The older woman did not appear to be listening. "They sent you." She looked at the teenager. "I prayed that they would help us and they sent you..."  
The teenager looked at the older woman in confusion. "Ms. Calendar, what are you talking about? Where is Buffy and Mr. Giles?"  
The older woman laughed. "Don't you understand? You are here... now... to help us."  
The teenager had no idea what the older woman was talking about. All of a sudden, she shivered and looked down at her body. To her astonishment, she wasn't wearing any clothing.  
Ms. Calendar looked at the teenager and came to the same realization. "Oh, forgive me." Turning around she went through some drawers and procured some clothing for the adolescent. "Here, put these on."  
As the teenager dressed, the older woman kept on mumbling to herself. Ms. Calendar then yelped in surprise. "Of course! I didn't realize that the alignment of the planets would have made the spell that powerful!"  
As soon as the teenager had finished dressing, she faced Ms. Calendar.  
"Now, could you please explain what is going on, Ms. Calendar?" asked the teenager.  
"I prayed to my gods that they would send us help and here you are." stated Ms. Calendar. She paused, looking the teenager up and down. "What is your name?"  
"I am Kendra, the Vampire Slayer."  
"A Slayer..." said Ms. Calendar slowly. "But, wait a minute. There is already a Slayer."  
"Yes, I know, Buffy. Where is she?"  
"I don't know where the Slayer is at this time. But how could you be the Slayer if there is already one?"  
"That is a long story." Kendra reflected upon what Ms. Calendar said. "But what do you mean, she is not here? Last time I saw her, she was going to fight Angelus and then I was fighting Drusilla..."  
"Angelus? You mean Angel?" Kendra nodded. Ms Calendar continued, "but that's not possible. The Slayer has never been to Sunnydale. We would have noticed a difference."  
Kendra was about to respond when something dawned on her. "Wait a minute! What are you doing here? You're dead! Angelus killed you!"  
"I can assure you that I am very much alive." replied Ms. Calendar, bemused. "And about Angel, he wouldn't hurt anyone without just cause, him having his soul and all."  
"There is something very wrong here." said Kendra as she contemplated what could possibly be going on.  
"No matter with that now. You were brought here for a reason."  
"And that would be?"  
"To help us."  
"Who is 'us'?"  
"Everyone. The entire world." Kendra again looked at her with confusion. "Have you no idea what has been happening?" Kendra shook her head. "How could you not know? The whole world has been afflicted by what happened."  
Kendra did not respond to Ms. Calendar's statement. She merely revised the whole sequence of events that transpired the moment she opened her eyes in this room. "What year is it?"  
"Huh?" asked Ms. Calendar.  
"What year is it?"  
Ms. Calendar shrugged her shoulders; uncertain of why the adolescent requested that information. "It's 1997."  
Kendra's eyes opened wide. "So, you're telling me that Buffy has never been to Sunnydale, it's 1997, you're alive, and I am here to help the entire world?"  
Ms. Calendar nodded.  
"There is definitely something not right about this."  
"Why do you keep saying that?" asked Ms. Calendar.  
"Ms. Calendar, I don't think that I belong here."  
"What? Where?"  
"This time... this world!"  
Ms. Calendar gave her a quizzical look. "What is the last thing that you remember before waking up here?"  
Kendra thought about it for a moment. "First of all, the year was 1998. I was fighting Drusilla. She and some vampires attacked the library, injuring Willow, Xander and Mr. Giles. Buffy had gone to fight Angelus. I was fighting her when all of a sudden, I couldn't move. She had me under some sort of spell... How could I have been so stupid and fall into her trap?!" Kendra clenched her fists before continuing. "The next thing I knew, she had slit my throat. My hands went to my throat and I fell." She paused. "I can't remember anything after that except for waking up here."  
Ms. Calendar cleared her throat. "I don't understand how this is possible... Wait a second!"  
Rushing over to a shelf filled with books, she removed a rather thick volume. Skimming through the pages, her hand came to rest upon a page and she perused it quickly. A small smile crept upon her face as she continued to read. Closing the book, she looked at Kendra.  
"I believe that I understand what has happened." she stated. "The spell that I used to beg the gods for help becomes a whole lot more powerful with the correct alignment of the planets. What I believe transpired is that you were killed at the same exact time I performed this spell, however the year and universe was different, even though the alignment of the planets was exactly the same. The gods decided to send your soul here. That is the only possible explanation that I can come up with."  
Kendra merely looked at her with astonishment. She could not believe what she was hearing. She was dead, but she wasn't? This is too much, thought Kendra.  
Just as Kendra was about to make a comment, there was a loud crash outside of the room.  
"Damn!" swore Ms. Calendar. "They've found me already."  
"Who? Who has found you?" asked Kendra, unsure about what was occurring. The noise coming from outside the room got louder.  
"The Master's assassins." replied Ms. Calendar.  
"The Master..." Kendra's voice trailed. I know that name, but from where?  
"You must leave. Now!" declared Ms. Calendar, ushering Kendra towards the window. Kendra stepped through the window, onto the ledge. "Find Angel. He can help you," was the last thing that Ms. Calendar said to Kendra before slamming the window down and turning to the door which was about to be broken down by the vampires behind it.  
"But Ms. Calendar-" started Kendra, but the older woman had already turned her back on her. Ms. Calendar ran across the room to grab a stake and cross, however she was unable to make it. A pair of vampires broke down the door and jumped at Ms. Calendar. The two vampires held Ms. Calendar while a third vampire walked through the door.  
Kendra watched as the new vampire walked towards Ms. Calendar. The vampire caressed Ms. Calendar's cheek, causing Ms. Calendar to spit on him. The vampire struck her across the face, drawing blood.  
"Well, that wasn't very nice Janna," said the vampire, who, was obviously the leader. "You worried us, running around and casting spells; trying to stop us." He caressed her hair. "But that's all going to stop now, isn't it Janna?"  
Before she could respond, the vampire leader bit her neck, relishing in the taste of her blood. Ms. Calendar's body collapsed to the floor, lifeless. The vampire leader's face returned to normal and Kendra got a good look at him.  
No! It can't be, thought Kendra. "Xander?" she said breathlessly.  
At the sound of his name, the vampire looked in the direction of the window and saw a beautiful, black girl staring at him in bewilderment. Their eyes met and lingered upon each other for a few seconds. Breaking the gaze, Kendra jumped off the ledge and ran into the night in search of an Angel. 


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter Two  
  
"Willow."  
The redheaded adolescent stirred in her sleep.  
The voice called again. "Willow."  
Half opening her eyes, the teenager rose from her bed and proceeded to the sliding doors that led to the balcony outside of her room. Sliding the glass door open, the half-asleep teenager came face to face with an old friend.  
"Xander?" she asked groggily. "Is that you?"  
"Yeah, Will. Let me in."  
Willow yawned. "Door's open, so come in."  
Xander passed through the doorway and looked at Willow who stood in her Winnie the Pooh pajamas. This is too easy, he thought. Without the slightest effort, he picked her up like a baby, cradling her back and legs in his arms. Just as he was about to change into his game face, she spoke, "I'm dreaming again, aren't I?"  
"Yes."  
"Is it that dream where you tell me that you love me?" she asked silently, eyes closed.  
Xander didn't reply. He blinked twice before having a brief moment of clarity; he finally understood that she was in love with him. Or at least, in love with the person he used to be. This could be fun.  
With her still in his arms, he walked over to the bed and set her down upon it. She snuggled into the blankets, believing that she was still asleep and oblivious to the danger that she was in. Changing to his vampire face, Xander bent down and planted a kiss on her lips. Before drawing away, one of his fangs cut her lower lip open. He licked away the blood, not missing one droplet, savoring its sweetness.  
Just as he was about to leave, he spoke, "Soon, Willow... Soon you will be mine," and left her room, closing the door behind him. The only trace of him ever being there was Willow's bloodstained lips. 


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter Three  
  
Kendra walked down the streets of Sunnydale, practically blinded by the sunlight. It was about eleven o'clock in the morning and she had been walking all night, trying to find Angel. However, she had been unsuccessful in determining his whereabouts and she was tired. During her journey, she had been able to dust a couple of vampires on the way. Consequently, they had been the same vampires that had attacked Ms. Calendar with Xander. Before staking them, Kendra had pushed them for information concerning Angel's location, but neither of them had been willing to talk.  
Now, Kendra was walking down the street, hungry and unsure about what to do. She had no money, no food, and no shelter. She was in a familiar, yet strange place. What am I going to do?, she asked herself.  
Just as she was about to sit down and ponder thoroughly her present situation, she came upon a house that seemed familiar. I remember this house, she said to herself. Running up the stairs, Kendra rang the doorbell, unsure of what would await her.  
After a few moments, the door opened slowly, revealing another adolescent who stared back at Kendra.  
"Yes?" asked the house dweller.  
"Hi," started Kendra uncertainly, "Willow."  
The redhead gave the black girl in front of her a confused look. "Umm... do I know you?"  
"Well... actually... no. No you don't." There was an awkward silence as Kendra tried to come up with the right words to say. "You see, I need your help."  
"My help..." said Willow slowly.  
"Well, it's kind of a long story," said Kendra quickly, "and... um... I... uh... I need your help in stopping the vampires."  
"The vampires..." said Willow slowly, again. "Right..."  
She doesn't believe a word that I'm saying, Kendra thought to herself. In this reality, she has no idea what's really going on.  
"Umm... I see that it was a mistake to come here." stated Kendra, feeling slightly embarrassed. There was another uncomfortable moment of silence. "Perhaps, you could tell me how to find Mr. Giles?"  
"Oh, that I can help you with." replied Willow eagerly. "Not, that I know where to find him on Saturdays... but during the week, you can find him at the school library... him being the librarian and all..."  
"Uh, thank you, Willow."  
Kendra turned away and was just about to walk down the flight of stairs when Willow spoke, "Are you sure that we've never met?"  
Kendra turned back around to face Willow. "Yes, I'm sure... but my name is Kendra."  
Willow smiled and began closing the door when Kendra remembered something. "Oh, and Willow? For your own safety, please stay away from Xander and never invite him into your house."  
Willow's smile faded and she gave Kendra a strange look. When she spoke, it was as if her voice caught in her throat. "Xander? Xander Harris?" Kendra nodded. A single tear ran down Willow's face. "Xander has been dead for over six months now." And she closed the door swiftly in Kendra's face.  
  
***  
  
Xander walked in silence through the Bronze, annoyed with the fact that it was daytime and that he couldn't hunt. Or maim, or kill for that matter. A smile crept to his lips as he recalled his last kill for that night. It's interesting how humans can pose such a great threat, yet their bodies are so fragile.  
Sauntering into a dimly lit room, Xander surveyed the area until his inhuman eyes came to rest upon the silhouette of another.  
"Janna has been eliminated." stated Xander with devilish pride as he approached the figure in the shadows. "As you requested, Master."  
"Wonderful." replied the ominous figure. The Master stepped out of the shadows and looked at Xander. "You are making an excellent vampire, indeed, Xander."  
Xander bowed his head in respect.  
"Ah, I can still remember when I first made you," said the Master, as he settled into his chair. "What was it? Six months ago?" Xander nodded. "You were so strong and so powerful. The first thing that you did was kill your parents and your best friend... what was his name again?"  
"Jesse." replied Xander with a smirk, as he relived the moment when his parents and Jesse had begged for their lives before he killed them all and drank their blood.  
The Master gave a small chuckle. "I trust that there were no complications, with 'Ms. Calendar'?"  
"None whatsoever," replied Xander, making the Master smile. Then, something occurred to him. "But-"  
"But?" asked the Master. "But what?"  
"After I had killed her... I heard someone whisper my name."  
"Go on," said the Master, leaning forward in his chair.  
"I turned and there was this girl, staring at me. She was outside, on the ledge, looking through the window."  
"A girl," said the Master slowly. "Describe her."  
"She was about 16, with long black hair, and dark, creamy skin..." his voice trailed off, recalling the mysterious girl's appearance and how her eyes had been so dark and so piercing.  
The Master looked at Xander hard. "This girl... she intrigues you?" It was more of a statement than a question.  
"She looked at me as if she knew me, but I have never seen her before."  
"Well, if she was with Ms. Calendar, she might pose some sort of threat to us." stated the Master. "Keep an eye out for this girl."  
Xander nodded again and turned to leave. Just as he was about to leave the room, the Master asked, "What happened to Steven and Kurtis?"  
Xander tried to recall what had happened earlier that night. "I split up with them. I needed to make a 'detour,' and they said that they were coming back here."  
"They never showed." declared the Master, without the slightest bit of concern. "What was this detour that you made?"  
"I went to see an old friend," said Xander mischievously, licking his lips as he remembered the titillating taste of Willow's blood.  
The Master smiled at his disciple. "Leave me now. There is much to plan."  
Xander left the room in thought, contemplating this mysterious girl and what unfortunate circumstances could befall Willow. He left the Master, who sat in his chair plotting the destruction of the world and other things closely related. 


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter Four  
  
The night was warm and musty. Puddles of old rain crept from the sidewalks and fell into the streets. Kendra walked alone, her face pale with hunger and exhaustion. This was her third night in Sunnydale and she had not eaten, nor slept. She had searched through most of the town for Angel and Mr. Giles, but had not been able to find either of them. Thankfully, tomorrow morning would be Monday; therefore, she could go to Sunnydale High School and talk to Mr. Giles.  
Kendra wore simply a white T-shirt (which was too small for her and clung to her figure like spandex), black pants, black boots (which were one size too small) and a black jacket. Her feet hurt from the small boots, but she bore it, remembering the sacrifice of the one whom had given them to her.  
Kendra sighed as she neared a cemetery. After walking around town for two days, she had been able to count twelve cemeteries. Sitting down on a park bench right outside the cemetery, Kendra again pondered upon her present situation. It wasn't until she had been seated for a few seconds before she realized that her bottom was wet. Standing up, Kendra frowned as she noticed the dampness of the bench that she had been previously sitting on. Great, thought Kendra. The only clothes that I have are now wet. Could this get any worse?  
As in response to her thought, six vampires appeared out of nowhere and approached her. Eyeing them carefully, Kendra noticed how none of the vampires were Xander and she sighed inwardly with relief. I don't think that I could deal with him just yet, she thought.  
"A girl as pretty as you shouldn't be out so late at night," said one of the vampires, looking her up and down.  
Kendra didn't like the way he looked at her and absentmindedly put her hand on the stake that she was hiding in her jacket.  
The vampire that had spoken to her broke away from the group and came closer to her. "Ooh! And what are we hiding?" Just as he reached out to touch her, Kendra blocked his arm, and in one swift motion, withdrew her stake and turned him to dust.  
Looking at the remaining five, she remembered something Buffy used to do. She taunted her opponents. Giving the vampires an icy smile, she said, "Anyone else want to play?"  
Her question got the desired response: the vampires lunged at her. Kendra kicked the closest one in the gut, sending him crashing to the ground. Next, she turned to the second and flipped him over her back. As soon as his body hit the ground, she plunged the stake into his chest, making his body explode. Turning around, her gaze shifted to the other three and she took a fighting stance. The three vampires encircled her, trying to make sure that she had no way of escaping. Little did they know that escape was not Kendra's plan.  
The vampire that Kendra had kicked stood up and glared at her. Speaking to the other vampires, he said, "Don't even bother with her blood. Just kill her!"  
The three vampires continued to circle her. Kendra waited patiently for one of them to attack. When one of them couldn't take it anymore, he lashed out with his fists. Kendra blocked each blow and struck the vampire in the face with a hook punch. The vampire staggered, dazed. Just as she was about to finish him, Kendra was assaulted from behind by a vampire that grabbed her. Kendra struggled briefly in his grasp, ascertaining that his strength was greater than hers was.  
The vampire lowered his head to bite her, believing he had the advantage, when Kendra swung her head backwards hitting him in the face with her skull. Momentarily hurt, the vampire let go of her. Kendra turned around and staked him before he could recover. Three down, three to go.  
In a matter of a few seconds, Kendra had dusted the two circling vampires and was left only to face the vampire that she had kicked. Kendra stood in a fighting stance and sized up her opponent. He was rather large and probably weighed about 200 lbs. As Kendra looked at him, she suddenly realized how tired she was feeling. She panted heavily from her workout. Having not eaten, nor slept since she woke up in Ms. Calendar's room, was beginning to take its toll on the young woman. Slayer or not, her body was utterly exhausted and these vampires weren't helping.  
The last remaining vampire looked at her with pure enmity. "What are you, a Slayer?"  
"No, just someone who didn't want to be bothered." Kendra decided to keep her identity a secret, not quite sure of the ramifications if people found out that she was a Slayer, but not the Slayer. As well, one of the rules of being the Slayer was to never reveal your secret identity. "Now can we get this over with?"  
The vampire came at her with a roundhouse kick, which she ducked under, delivering an uppercut to his midsection. But instead of backing away because of the punch, as she had anticipated, he retaliated by punching her in the face. Kendra flew backwards and landed on her soiled behind. Ouch! Standing up again, she attacked the vampire. However, every kick and punch she delivered was blocked with the utmost speed and agility.  
Kendra felt herself grow weaker as the fight continued. If she had been up to full strength, she would have dusted this vampire a long time ago, but now she found herself struggling to stay alive under his assault.  
Next thing Kendra knew, her stake was knocked out of her hand and the vampire kicked her in the stomach, sending Kendra reeling into a tombstone. Her head connected with the tombstone violently, leaving Kendra feeling dazed and in pain. Her eyes tried to focus on something, but all she could see was a large blur. A feeling of nausea washed over her as she stood up.  
Before she could react, the vampire had seized Kendra by her throat and had lifted her up. Kendra dangled in his grip as he choked her. Her legs flailed beneath as she tried to kick him, but to no avail. Her hands flew to the arms that held her in midair, trying to break the deadly grip that he had on her neck. Her body was too exhausted to respond with enough strength to stop her assailant.  
Everything started to go dark as he squeezed the life out of her body. Then suddenly, Kendra felt his body explode into dust and she fell to the ground, the wind knocked out of her, but thankful that she was still breathing.  
Rolling onto her back, Kendra opened her eyes, sending pain throughout her head. She was just about to close her eyes again, in an attempt to stop the pain, when she agonizingly focused on an individual standing over her.  
Kendra felt herself teetering on the brink of consciousness. She heard herself say something in a hoarse whisper. The word hung in the air like a dense fog.  
As Kendra slipped into unconsciousness, the word she had spoken resonated in her mind and a warm liquid flowed into her mouth. She mouthed the word again, "Angel..."  
Then, darkness... 


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter Five  
  
"M'Lady," greeted the butler with a bow. Nodding slightly, Kendra walked on past the butler and entered the hall. She marveled at the splendor of the party.  
Looking down at her attire, Kendra admired the lovely dress that she wore. It was, in fact, a gown the color of blood, with gorgeous shoes to match. The dress was from the 18th century, just like everyone else's attire. Her hair was styled and worn up, while her hands were gloved past her elbows in the same color as her dress. Many people, mostly men, had turned to look at her as soon as she had entered the party. She was definitely a breathtaking sight.  
The hall was filled with dozens of people of aristocracy. The lords and ladies all bustled about in this wonderful and exuberant social event. An orchestra played light music in the background while people socialized, gossiped, ate, and danced.  
Walking further into the hall, Kendra suddenly was struck with the notion that something was not right. This was not her time, nor her place. She did not belong here in this century.  
Just as she was about to turn around and exit the party, a hand caught hers. Turning around, Kendra looked upon the young man who had caught her attention as he released his grip on her hand. Gazing into his hazel eyes and handsome smile, Kendra's heart couldn't help skipping a beat.  
"M'Lady, would ye do me the honor of joining me in this dance?" asked Angel with a thick Irish accent, who was also dressed in 18th century clothing. He extended his hand again signifying his offer.  
Kendra smiled slightly. And before her brain had processed exactly what was going on, she blurted out, "It would be my pleasure." She placed her right, gloved hand in his and he led her to the dance floor. Once there, he placed his right hand on her waist and she put her left hand on his shoulder. They began to dance.  
The music was somber yet beautiful and Kendra couldn't help but lose herself in it and the moment. The music washed over her as they danced. As the two of them waltzed across the room, Kendra felt, strangely, safe and secure in Angel's arms. Her previous worries had dissolved and all she thought about was being here, now, with him.  
Angel let go of Kendra's waist and twirled her around. She closed her eyes, to fully enjoy the moment. When Kendra felt the hand return to her waist, she opened her eyes, only to find that it was not Angel she was dancing with anymore. Instead, she stared into the eyes of one who bore an insidious grin upon his face.  
Without warning, Kendra's new partner, Xander, pulled her fiercely to his body. She felt her chest crush upon his own, ruffling her beautiful gown. Kendra gasped at the strength and apparent insistence of Xander's actions. He lowered his head and she could feel his breath upon her neck. Again, her heart skipped a beat. Through their clothing, Kendra could feel his heart beating. But, he's a vampire, her mind reasoned. His heart shouldn't be beating and he shouldn't be breathing!  
Her mind was again plagued with thoughts of something being terribly wrong. Looking over Xander's shoulder, she was momentarily distracted by the sight of a vampire. A bald vampire was plainly walking among the people who continued to laugh and gossip. His gaze suddenly fixed upon her and he smiled, making Kendra's blood run cold.  
There was a flash of blinding light, and Kendra found herself in the Sunnydale High School library, wearing the same clothes Ms. Calendar had given her. Her ears heard the sound of sobbing. Someone was crying.  
Walking up the steps, Kendra saw someone on their knees in a crumpled heap, their head in their hands, crying. As she approached the individual, Kendra soon realized that it was Willow. Kendra placed a hand on Willow's shoulder. The redheaded adolescent lifted her head and turned to face Kendra. Kendra gasped at the sight that she was faced with. Willow's face was cut and bloodied. Her hands also had blood upon them. She outstretched her hands towards Kendra as if she were offering something or begging her and said, "Blindness."  
Kendra was then compelled to turn around. Turning her back on Willow, Kendra looked down the stairs to where someone looked upon her patiently. Kendra was not prepared for the person that she saw.  
It's Buffy. She was dressed in a plain, white dress, which flowed past her bare feet, but it was Buffy. Kendra was overjoyed to see the Slayer. She wanted to say something, anything, but she found herself unable to even make a sound.  
Buffy merely looked at her, as if analyzing her. Then she raised her right arm, pointed her index finger at Kendra and spoke in a calm voice, "You. You do not belong." And before Kendra knew what was happening, Buffy was consumed in flames. Kendra wanted to leap down the stairs to try and help her, but found herself unable to move. In a matter of a few seconds, there were only ashes where Buffy had been standing.  
Kendra found her mobility again, and was just about to turn back to Willow, when a hand grabbed her by the shoulders and spun her around. There again was Angel, but he was different from when Kendra had been dancing with him. She didn't have that same feeling of safety. Looking intently, she noticed how tears streamed down his face. When he whispered to her, his voice no longer held any trace of the previous Irish accent, "You. You're the one."  
Kendra blinked her eyes, and Angel was replaced with Xander again. This time, Xander bore his vampire game face and an evil grin. "But you're dead." He brutally grabbed her shoulder and head, exposed her neck, and bit into the flesh. Kendra screamed. 


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter Six  
  
A scream erupted from Kendra's lips as she awoke with a start from her dream. Shutting her mouth, she came to her senses and realized that she wasn't in any apparent danger. Quickly sitting up, the back of Kendra's head pulsated with pain. Bringing her hand to her head, Kendra felt the bandages that were wrapped around her head. She lay back down, easing the pain from her head, enabling her to think.  
Kendra soon realized that she no longer wore the jacket and boots that Ms. Calendar had given her. Her shirt was also torn. Actually, the shirt had been ripped all the way around starting from under her chest. Reaching down, Kendra felt the bandages on her stomach, which covered the cut she had acquired during the fight. Funny, I didn't even realize that the vampire had scratched me. As she applied a little pressure to the wound, she realized that it wasn't a small scratch. Thankfully, the wound had already started to heal itself.  
Licking her lips, Kendra noticed how her lower lip was rough and coarse, as if someone had bitten it. She then understood the warm liquid that she had tasted when she lost consciousness; it was her own blood. She must have bitten her lip while the vampire had been trying to choke her to death.  
Her mind then tried to recall what had happened right before she had lost consciousness. Someone staked the vampire and I fell. My head hurt so much... then I saw someone. But who... who saved me? Could it have been Buffy? Could she be here? And what about my dream... it was so real...  
Surveying the area, Kendra came faced with the fact that the place that she found herself in now wasn't entirely unfamiliar. Looking down at the bed she was resting in, her mind seemed to click with the realization that she had seen this bed before. But where?  
Her acute hearing then picked up the sound of hurrying footsteps. Kendra wanted to sit up, but again found her head wracked with pain once she tried. She lay back down once more and silently waited.  
There was a shadow and then, she saw him. For a second, she tensed. He looked exactly the same as she remembered him. As soon as he had entered the room, she had felt the darkness that surrounded him like an invisible cloak. She could literally sense the restrained evil that his soul tried to keep at bay. As if to mimic his obscurity, he wore black slacks and a black shirt, the top was unbuttoned, exposing some of his chest.  
She opened her mouth to say something, but found herself lacking words. She quickly shut her mouth.  
He spoke first; "I thought I heard you scream." Silence was his only response. "Are you okay?" Kendra gave a slight nod of her head, but remained mute.  
Looking around, as if uncomfortable, he appeared to sigh before walking towards the bed. Again, Kendra tensed, as he came closer to her. As he sat on the bed, Kendra tried to sit up once more, but this time more slowly. The pain wasn't as bad, as she sat up, leaning her back and head against the wall.  
He reached out to inspect the bandage around her head. The instant his hand moved towards her, she recoiled. She pulled her legs closer to her. It appeared to him as if her motions were that of discomfort. It was like she didn't want to be near him. He withdrew his hand, but still remained seated on the bed while staring at her face; there was no hint of fear or panic. Her face was merely expressionless.  
"I guess you're wondering where you are and what you're doing here?" he asked slowly. Again, silence. He paused before continuing, "Well, I was walking through the cemetery and happened to see you being choked by some vampire... so... I decided to help you out." While he was giving his explanation, he hadn't been looking at her, but when he finished, he cautiously peered at her face. Her expression was blank, again. He wondered what was going through her head before hesitantly carrying on, "The reason that I brought you here... instead of bringing you to a hospital... is because before you lost consciousness, I heard... or I thought I heard... you call out my-"  
"-name?" finished Kendra softly. Angel merely gave her a calculating look, however a tiny smile began to manifest upon his face. She speaks, he thought amusingly. She had not meant to say anything, but the word had just slipped out of her mouth. Kendra looked down at her hands in slight embarrassment before stating tentatively, "Thank you... for saving my life..." she paused, lifted her head and looked into his eyes, "Angel."   
Kendra then wondered what in the world she was doing. Did I just thank Angelus for saving my life? He's a vampire. More than that, he's one of the most dangerous and ingenious vampires ever, her mind screamed. You don't thank them for anything. You kill them. Kendra was torn between her prejudice view on vampires and what she knew about this particular vampire whose bed she happened to be lying in at that very moment.  
Angel, on the other hand, was so stunned by her gaze and sudden gratitude that he was left speechless. So she does know who I am... or at least my name, he thought. Her gaze seemed to bore into him; it was like she could see into the recesses of his soul. But, who is she? I have never laid eyes upon her before.  
The silence between the two of them was almost palpable. It became intolerable for Angel so he decided to break it. He asked her the most logical question that came to mind: "Have we ever met?"  
Her eyes seemed to glaze over in recognition as she recalled the first time that she had seen him. She had just arrived in Sunnydale and had felt drawn to the skating rink because she had felt a strong presence there. But what she found was Angel and Buffy kissing. She, of course, did not know that Buffy was the Slayer at that time and that he was the infamous Angelus. Buffy appeared to be so much in love with him, thought Kendra. But here, now... she probably doesn't even know him. Then, there was the whole misunderstanding when she fought him after finding him trying to hurt Willy, the Snitch, (who, in her opinion, probably deserved whatever was coming to him). I'm surprised that he wasn't much of a challenge, thought Kendra.  
After a moment's hesitation, Kendra replied softly, "No. No... we have never met."  
"Then how did you know my name?" asked Angel suspiciously, uncertain of how one so young could know about him. She was definitely not the Slayer, for he had recently checked upon Buffy, who happened to be fighting demons in Cleveland.  
Kendra thought about this question and tried to come up with a suitable response other than the truth. "Ms. Calendar; she told me."  
"Ms. Calendar?" said Angel. "She told you? For what purpose?" Angel now became highly suspicious. He thought back to when he saved her life: Angel had seen most of Kendra's fight with the large vampire that had nearly killed her. Usually, during this time, he wouldn't have interfered with a vampire killing less he be hunted down by the Master and his assassins. However, she had fought valiantly against the brute and had been able to take blows that would have probably killed a normal human being. Also, there's just something about this girl...  
Before Kendra could respond to his question, Angel blurted out something that he had been lulling over in his mind since the moment that he had laid eyes upon her, "Who are you?"  
  
***  
  
Willow opened her eyes and came face to face with her alarm clock. The time was 7:00 in the morning. Rising from her bed, she groggily proceeded to the washroom to get ready for school. As she looked at herself in the mirror, Willow noticed the dark circles underneath her eyes; she had not been sleeping well in the past week.  
Disrobing, Willow turned on the hot water and stepped into the shower. As the water caressed her body, she remained oblivious to the small scratch upon the base of her neck, which had not been there the previous night.  
Soaping up her body, Willow's thoughts wandered to the dream that she had had the night before. Her memory was a bit hazy about the dream, but she definitely remembered how Xander had been in it. It's funny, thought Willow. Ever since that girl... what was her name again? Oh yeah, Kendra. Ever since she came by, every dream I have now involves either her or Xander. But these dreams were not like the ones that she used to have after she had learned about Xander's death. These were much more intense. But last night was the first time ever that they were both in my dream. I remember being in some sort of room and there was Xander standing next to this tall guy with brown hair. Then, Kendra was there all of a sudden. All three of them were looking at me and I wanted to run away. I was so scared. Then, Xander was holding me and telling me that everything was going to be okay... but there was something wrong... while Xander was holding me... Kendra was screaming at me to get away from him... that he was going to hurt me...   
Willow shook her head and came to her senses as she realized that she couldn't remember any more. Turning off the water and stepping out of the shower, Willow wrapped a towel around her body. The last thought she had pertaining to her latest dream was dismissed as she spoke out loud, "Weird dream." She then wondered about what clothes she was going to wear to school. 


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven  
  
Xander stood in silence as the Master slowly paced the room. The Master was in quiet, contemplative thought. Stopping his pacing, he looked at Xander and spoke, "How could they just disappear?"  
Xander shrugged his shoulders slightly, unable to come up with an answer.  
"Don't give me that," stated the Master. "What's happening to this town? Eight vampires mysteriously disappear in a matter of three nights and you can't tell me why?"  
Again, Xander responded only with silence. The Master continued, "If I didn't know any better, I would think that we have a Slayer in our midst."  
Xander cocked his eyebrow. A Slayer? Here? Now? What a delicious thought. Xander had never seen nor faced a Slayer before. He thought that it would do wonders for his reputation if he killed one, like it did for that William The Bloody guy that he had heard so much about. What was that name he was going by now? Oh yeah, Spike.  
"But I do know better," said the Master. "I spoke to a demon just the other night and he told me that the Slayer was causing trouble for him and his kind down in Cleveland. He even asked me for some help."  
"But if it's not a Slayer, then-"  
" 'Then who', you ask?" The Master stared into space, not divulging an answer.  
Xander tentatively asked, "What about Angel?"  
A sneer marked the Master's face as he chuckled at Xander's comment. "He wouldn't risk interfering with us. He may be a coward, but he's not stupid. No; something tells me we're dealing with something or someone else."  
"What now?"  
"Try to find out what has happened to those eight vampires. We can't afford to lose anymore, especially in the times to come." Xander nodded his head. The Master continued, "Oh, and if you happen to come across Angel, find out what he knows about what's going on."  
Xander had an evil smirk upon his face once the Master had spoken those last words. "It would be my pleasure." And he walked away from the Master, heading out into the night in pursuit of answers.  
  
***  
  
Kendra closed her eyes and tried to pretend that he wasn't still staring at her. It had only been a few seconds since he had asked her the question, but it had felt like an eternity that she hadn't answered him. What do I say to him?, she asked herself. That I'm a dead Vampire Slayer who has somehow traveled to an alternate reality for some unknown purpose? She opened her eyes only to find him still gazing at her curiously. Well, I must tell him something.  
"My name is Kendra," she stated quietly. And where do I go from here? Kendra's thoughts conflicted upon whether or not she should trust Angel. I mean, he is a vampire, after all. Then again, if he wanted to kill me, he could have done it a long time ago. As well, Ms. Calendar specifically told me to seek out his help. If she trusted him, then maybe I should too. Kendra eyed him suspiciously as she reviewed her options on what she should tell him. She came to a decision. "I awoke, two nights before you saved me, in a room with Ms. Calendar. I do not know how I came to be there or by what magic, but I woke up there." Kendra neglected to mention her nudity. She continued, "Ms. Calendar told me that she had been praying to her gods and that the alignment of the planets had made her spell stronger."  
"What spell?"  
"I'm not certain," replied Kendra. "She told me that I was sent here to help..." she paused before continuing, "to help... the entire world."  
Angel looked at her in slight surprise. "The entire world," he repeated slowly.  
"Yes," said Kendra quickly. "We were then interrupted by some noise outside of the room. She said something about the Master's assassins." Angel's eyes seemed to flash with recognition when she mentioned the Master. "She didn't say much after that except that I should find you."  
Angel nodded. "Where is she now?"  
"Dead," she stated quietly. Angel looked at Kendra sagely. "She had locked me out on the ledge of her window and I saw the Master's assassins kill her." Kendra also neglected to divulge that she knew (or had known) the vampire that had killed Ms. Calendar.  
"But what about before you awoke in Ms. Calendar's room?"  
"I... I..." Do I tell him? "I can't remember."  
"You can't remember?"  
"Well..." she said hesitantly, "only bits and pieces. Not enough to make sense of it," she lied. It's probably better that he doesn't know, she thought. He would ask questions that I'm not prepared to answer.  
"Well, you certainly had to be some kind of warrior," said Angel. "Your strength, agility and technique in that fight were impressive. The last mortal I saw who could fight like you did, at your age, was..." he hesitated before continuing, "-the Slayer."  
Angel silently noted how Kendra's eyes seemed to brighten with recognition as soon as he had mentioned the Slayer. Interesting.  
"Well... um... I wouldn't compare myself to a Slayer... I'm certainly not as good as one," said Kendra rather quickly. She did not want to arouse Angel's suspicion about the Slayer business. Even so, it had taken Kendra slight restraint to make that statement, for she knew that her technique as a Slayer was exceptional, since she had been training for many years. The only reason that she had taken so long to kill those six vampires and had nearly died was because her body had been weak due to lack of food and sleep for three nights. Kendra supposed that Angel now thought that that fight demonstrated the extent of her abilities. Better that he not know my limits.  
Angel looked at Kendra, taking in all of her movements. He could sense that there was something that she wasn't telling him. As he gazed at her, Angel remembered the dressings for the wounds on her head and stomach. He then recalled how she had backed away from him when he had first tried to inspect them. Tentatively, he asked, "Can I take a look at those bandages?"  
Kendra's first thought was to immediately say no. But, she comprehended that this response was merely fuelled by her instinctive desire to stay away from him. After a few seconds, her common sense kicked in because she realized from the throbbing in her stomach and the pounding in her head that she was too injured to ascertain the extent of her injuries and how to heal them properly. She nodded her head in response to his question.  
As Angel moved closer to her, he noticed how she tensed as the distance between them got smaller. However, this time, she did not back away, which he figured was a good sign.  
As soon as his hand came in contact with her head, Kendra felt slightly disgusted by his gentle touch. He was a demon, and it didn't make sense to her body how this demon could be so delicate with her.  
Slowly, and with great care, Angel unwrapped the bandage from around her head. He then removed the gauze that had been placed upon the hideous gash that she had acquired during her fight. The wound was on Kendra's forehead, quite close to her right temple.  
Angel briefly inspected her head before saying, "The bleeding has stopped and the wound has already begun to heal." She has recovered extremely fast, he said to himself. Just two days ago, the wound was fresh and bleeding at the slightest touch. And here I thought that it would need stitches. A day after he had rescued Kendra, Angel had noticed that the wound had already healed.  
"Lie down," he told her. Kendra gave him a peculiar look. "I need to check the wound on your stomach. It's easier if you're lying down," he stated.  
Kendra lay down with slight discomfort, but without protest. She anticipated the touch of his cold hands upon her stomach. As soon as his hands came in contact with her skin, Kendra suddenly became aware of Angel's proximity to her body and his flesh in contact with hers. She had never been this close to a member of the opposite sex before, unless she was pummeling them.  
Angel removed the bandage from Kendra's stomach, exposing the wound. He gently touched it to see how tender it was. Kendra gasped softly when his hand touched the wound. Angel again noticed how it was already healing. The cut on her stomach wasn't very deep, but Angel had thought that it would also need stitches and was again surprised to find that it had healed quite quickly. As he examined the lesion gently, he was looking so intently that he didn't notice the look that Kendra was giving him.  
"Well, it looks like you're going to be fine." Angel replaced the bandage on her stomach with a fresh one.  
All of sudden, Kendra's stomach growled, startling them both. Kendra mumbled an apology.  
"When was the last time you ate?"  
"I haven't eaten at all." Kendra then noticed that her stomach was severely aching, due to lack of food. She wasn't dehydrated because she had been able to drink water while walking through Sunnydale's parks. There were many water fountains in Sunnydale.  
Kendra then asked, "How long have I been here?"  
"I brought you here on Sunday night. It's now Tuesday."  
I was unconscious for that long?, thought Kendra. My body must have really needed time to recuperate. Since she had told Angel that she had arrived two nights before her rendez-vous with those six vampires, Kendra came to the conclusion that she had found herself in Ms. Calendar's room on Friday. I've been in Sunnydale for five days now, and still have not eaten.  
Angel then said, "You haven't eaten at all?" Kendra shook her head. Immediately, he stood up. "I'll... I'll get you something." And he left the room without even giving her any time to respond.  
Kendra heard Angel leave the apartment and she let out a sigh of relief as soon as she couldn't feel his presence anymore. And now what?, she asked herself. Her instinct told her to get out of this vampire's dwelling as quickly as possible. But as she sat up again and tried to get out of the bed, Kendra realized that she was in no condition to go anywhere. Her head was racked with pain and her stomach hurt. And where would I go? There is no place for me in this reality... 


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight  
  
Angel stood in line at the supermarket, waiting for his turn at the cash. It was his first time ever in a supermarket, but he thought that he had handled himself quite well. Looking down at the basket he held in his hands, a wave of uncertainty washed over him as he speculated upon whether or not he had chosen suitable food. How was he to know what sort of food teenage mortals preferred these days? He had contemplated buying fast food, but realized that Kendra would probably need at least a day to recuperate enough that she would be able to walk. So, he had bought a day's worth of food: some fruit, bread, cereal, etc. At least, if she didn't like the beverages, he could drink that.  
The cashier gave him a wide smile as he paid for his items. Angel half-smiled at her before taking the bag of food and leaving.  
As he walked down the street towards his apartment, his thoughts drifted towards the girl's story. She says that she doesn't remember anything, he considered, but my gut tells me that there's something else...  
Walking past the Bronze, Angel noticed that many teenagers were still loitering around the only club in Sunnydale. He thought it was strange, considering the incident that had occurred there only a few months ago.  
Rounding a corner, Angel stepped into his building and walked up to his front door. As he removed the key to unlock the door, a thought crept into his mind. It was possible that once he entered his apartment, he would discover that the teenage girl was no longer there. But, he quickly dismissed that thought, knowing perfectly well that the girl was probably too weak from her injuries to even make it to the door, let alone out of the building.  
Once entering the apartment, Angel set the groceries down next to the refrigerator. Could he breathe, he would have let out a sigh of relief; she was still here. The scent of her blood was still so pungent in the whole apartment and he could hear the beating of her heart. The smell of her blood and the pulsing of her heart was intoxicating and Angel could feel the demon within him stir.  
Walking over to the bed, Angel saw that Kendra was lying down with her eyes closed, but he could tell that she wasn't asleep. After a few moments, she finally opened her eyes and once again Angel felt like her mere stare could see into the depths of his very essence.  
"I brought you some food," stated Angel quietly. She nodded. "Are you well enough to walk?" Again she nodded.  
Slowly, Kendra sat up and swung her legs out of bed. As she applied a little bit of weight upon her heels and tried to stand vertically, her world started to spin. Angel noticed that her legs were buckling under her weight. With inhuman speed, he rushed to her side, grasped her waist and supported her weight upon himself. They started to inch towards the table. After a few seconds, Angel realized that if they continued at this pace, it would be several minutes before they reached their destination.  
Before she even knew what was happening and without offering her an explanation, Angel swept Kendra up in his arms, walked over to the table, and set her down in a chair. She contemplated protesting, but dismissed the thought thinking that it wouldn't get her anywhere if she did.  
She silently observed Angel as he removed the groceries and put together a sandwich for her. He set down the food and a glass of Coke. Kendra stared at the food for a minute, as if searching for something wrong or treacherous, before grabbing the sandwich and devouring it in a few bites. She finished off her meal by gulping down her drink.  
Kendra inwardly smiled. It was nice to taste food again and have the feeling of food in her stomach. Looking back at Angel, she noticed that he happened to be staring at her.  
"So, care to finally tell me where you're from?" he asked with a sly smile.  
Kendra was caught off guard by this blunt question. She thought that he had bought her previous story. She grasped the glass tightly in her hands, hoping to find some answer in it. Sighing softly, she returned her gaze back to the vampire in front of her. "I believe that I am from an alternate universe."  
A spark of light went off in Angel's eyes as he absorbed this information, yet his actual expression remained neutral.  
"That is all that I can remember," said Kendra. "Ms. Calendar told me that somehow the spell that she was performing brought me to this universe and I am supposed to help the world in some way."  
Angel nodded, surprising her with his calmness.  
"The one thing that I don't understand is why she told me to seek you out," proceeded Kendra, "and why the Master was after her. Also, wasn't someone supposed to stop the Master from rising?"  
"These are all things that I can answer," replied Angel. "First of all, some of us did try to stop the Master. Unfortunately, we failed. The Harvest proceeded as foretold. He used a vampire named Luke as his vessel. The vessel had to feed on enough humans in order for the Master to have enough power to rise." Kendra nodded, remembering how her Watcher had spoken to her once about the proceedings of the Harvest. "I had thought that someone was going to come and try to stop him but nothing happened... maybe the Slayer... but no one came." Angel appeared to sigh. "So, on the eve of the Harvest, I went to the Bronze because I knew that that was where Luke was headed. I didn't have a plan at the time but I knew that I had to do something. On my way there, I ran into Ms. Calendar. She somehow knew about the Harvest and the Master and had gathered a group of people to try and stop him. I informed her that the vessel was going to the Bronze. So, we went and tried to stop them. We were able to kill all of the vampires and incapacitate Luke." Angel paused as he recalled plunging a stake into Darla's chest. The expression on his sire's face, as he had reduced her to dust, still haunted him. He cleared his throat as he put the thought out of his mind. "However, we were too late to stop them from completing their mission. Luke had fed on enough humans and the Master was able to break through his dimensional prison. As a result, the Hellmouth was open and many demons escaped onto the Earth."  
"Is the Hellmouth still open?" inquired Kendra softly, as she contemplated the dire consequences that must have reaped this planet because of what had transpired. Now she fully understood what Ms. Calendar had been trying to tell her about the whole world being afflicted by what had happened.  
"No," replied Angel. Kendra gave a slight sigh of relief. "Ms. Calendar and a few others that were sorcerers performed some sort of spell, using the vessel as their conductor. The spell resulted in the Hellmouth being resealed and the vessel being sent to Hell."  
"Is that why the Master sent his assassins after Ms. Calendar?" asked Kendra, between stifling a yawn.  
Angel nodded. "The Master sent his assassins after all the sorcerers that had a hand in sealing the Hellmouth. Ms. Calendar was the last one. Fortunately, the spell that they performed is still binding, even in their death. There is only one way that the Master could open the Hellmouth again. I and a few others are the only ones who know exactly how to do it."  
As Angel finished his last sentence, he noticed that Kendra's head began to droop a little as she yawned again. He could see and sense the tiredness that threatened to overtake her entire body. In order not repeat the same scene that had transpired when she had first tried to walk, Angel picked her up again and carried her back to the bed. This time, Kendra was too tired to even consider protesting. As soon as her body came in contact with the soft bed, her only reality was the one to be found in her own dreams.  
  
***  
  
Pulling out a cigarette, Xander brought it to his lips as he observed the Master's servants' scour the cemetery. This was the last cemetery to be checked out. If they don't find anything this time, the Master's going to be pissed, thought Xander while striking a match and lighting his cigarette.  
After a few minutes, he got bored of his cigarette and dashed it on the ground. Just as the butt hit the grass and died out, one of the minions scurried towards him.  
"We've found something." stated the minion. "The eight vampires that were missing probably fell in battle. There are two stakes on the ground and their dust remains are everywhere." Xander nodded slowly in response to this information. He contemplated upon whom could have dusted eight vampires in one night.  
"There's something else," continued the minion. Xander cocked an eyebrow. The minion withdrew a piece of material from his pocket and gave it to Xander. "We found this next to one of the dust piles."  
The instant the material was in his hand, Xander could smell the traces of blood. Looking at the cloth, he noticed that it was white and there were drops of blood upon it. He'd take it to the Master. Turning away from the minion, he stated, "Let's get out of here."  
Taking the cloth he rubbed it softly against his cheek, as if searching for some answer in its touch. Also, there seemed to be something familiar about it. Something, he couldn't quite place...  
  
***  
  
Kendra's eyes fluttered open as the last remnants of her dream faded away. It had been three days since her talk with Angel and the two of them had fallen into a daily routine. He would nurse her wounds and feed her every day. Mostly during the day she would sleep or lie in bed just thinking about things.  
But as Kendra rose from the bed, she could feel that today was going to be different. She had almost completely healed from her previous injuries and was managing just fine on her own now. Angel no longer had to carry her anywhere.  
Their relationship was a silent one. She didn't say very much and the same went for him. Besides, Angel slept mostly during the day and during the night went to pick up some food for her and every now and then, his nourishment. Kendra always felt slightly guilty about the fact that he would sleep on the floor, due to her occupation of his bed.  
That morning, however, Angel was not asleep. Kendra found that slightly surprising, but assumed that maybe Angel also felt that today was going to be different from the past three-day norm.  
There was some breakfast laid out for her on the table and Angel was sitting across from her usual seat. As she sat down, the fact that Angel wasn't facing her somewhat bothered her. He looks as if he's waiting for something, she thought. What could he possibly be waiting for?  
There was an awkward moment of silence as she thought of something to say. Finally, Angel turned around to face her. Kendra opened her mouth, but he spoke first.  
"You've recuperated enough," he stated flatly. "There's nothing more that I can do for you."  
Kendra nodded her head slowly at this statement, knowing perfectly well where he was heading with this. It is time for us to part ways, she thought.  
Without touching her breakfast, she quickly rose and grabbed her boots. After putting them on, she headed towards the door, and grasped the doorknob. Kendra opened the door, preparing to venture forth into a world that was not her own, but before she could walk through the doorway, he spoke and his words made her stop in her tracks: "So, where are you going to go now?"  
Kendra furrowed her brow slightly as her mind considered his question. She realized now that she had not thought ahead. She had not thought about what she would do after she had recuperated. Perhaps it would be wise to go back to my home country and seek out Mr. Zabuto... but... wait a minute! If this is an alternate reality and if Buffy is the Slayer here, then I would still be training with Mr. Zabuto. Could this mean that there are two of me in this same reality? What would happen if I came in contact with myself? Kendra quickly dismissed that thought and her mind came back to the situation at hand. Besides, that was more than she wanted to think about at the moment. Next, Kendra considered looking up Buffy's Watcher from her reality: Mr. Giles. However, now that I think about it, he might be like Willow: completely oblivious to what is happening. If he's working at the high school, then there is no way that he could be a Watcher in this reality if the Slayer (if it is Buffy) has never been to Sunnydale. Kendra sighed. She was not getting anywhere. The answer to Angel's question was pretty obvious now, to her. "I don't know... there, in fact, is nowhere for me to go... I have no one..."  
Her eyes looked at the floor as she finished her last sentence. But as she considered her last words, something dawned on her. Her statement wasn't exactly true. Lifting her gaze and looking back at him, she thought, I think that maybe... I'm not as alone as I thought...  
Looking him straight in the eye, she said, "Do you think... I mean..." her voice caught slightly in her throat. Clearing her throat, she continued, "What I'm trying to say... umm... is... would it be possible..." her voice trailed off as her gaze hit the floor again. After a few seconds, she raised her eyes a little to determine his reaction. His face had a serious look upon it, but looking harder, she noticed with quiet shock that his eyes were dancing. He thinks this is funny!, her mind pronounced, outraged. Yet, she couldn't stop her cheeks from becoming a crimson hue.  
Angel knew what she was trying to ask him and decided to make it easier for her by saying, "Would you like to stay here?"  
Kendra looked up at him, hope shining in her eyes. He could swear that her look seemed to say, "Really? Do you mean it?" But, he never heard her speak those words.  
Closing the door behind her, Kendra's only reply was, "Yes... thank you." 


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine  
  
Something seemed abnormal to Kendra as she opened her eyes. The floor seemed oddly soft. As she ran her hand over the surface she was lying on, she realized that she no longer was on the floor that she had fallen asleep upon the night before. She rose from the cot in search of some answers. Rounding the corner, she found Angel asleep in his bed.  
Deciding not to wake him, Kendra walked back towards the cot and looking closely, she found a note. Picking it up, her lips curved into a smile as she read it: "You shouldn't have to sleep on the floor. I thought that you might be more comfortable here. Angel."  
Kendra nearly laughed out loud. She had had a feeling that Angel wouldn't settle for her decision to sleep on the floor. After their discussion about her staying with him, she had declared to him that she no longer would sleep in his bed, considering that she was almost fully recovered. He had offered her his bed but she had refused, arguing that she wouldn't deprive him of his own bed, and that she would sleep on the floor. Finally, she had said that the situation was not up for discussion. He had shrugged and had gone to bed. Or so she had thought.  
  
Angel woke up a few minutes before dusk, just as Kendra was starting the supper she had prepared for herself. He gave Kendra a slight smile as he proceeded to the fridge. He removed a blood packet and turned away from her before ingesting the contents and throwing the empty pack away. Angel then sat down at the table.  
Kendra eyed him carefully as she ate. She had begun to feel restless throughout the day. She had gone outside for a walk, thinking that it might help, but to her dismay, it hadn't. She needed to do something, anything. At least when she was back in her own reality, she had patrolling, training, and studying of appropriate Slayer knowledge to keep her busy throughout the days.  
"Word on the street is that strange things are happening at the Bronze," announced Angel, just to get a conversation started.  
"The Bronze?"  
"It's a sort of night club/lounge that many of the teenagers around here like to attend."  
Kendra's curiosity was immediately piqued. "Vampires?"  
"I think so," replied Angel. "No one's really saying. It's all sort of hush hush. It would appear that a few people seem to disappear each week. Not that people disappearing in Sunnydale is strange, but in each instance, someone who claimed to be a part of the staff usually asked the person to stay behind after hours. No one ever saw them leave the building."  
Kendra thought about this information for a few seconds before eagerly blurting out, "Let's go check it out!"  
Angel looked at her carefully in silence for a few seconds before sighing. "I don't know if I want to chance interfering with vampires-"  
Kendra cut him off, not even waiting to hear the end of his sentence. "I can't believe that you would just sit by when you know that something's up!"  
"I just don't want trouble," stated Angel softly.  
Kendra was nearly beside herself and the volume of her voice began to rise. "Well, I'm sorry, but the moment you started to care about what happens to mortals and decided to do something about the Harvest, you became involved. And the moment you saved my life, you knew you were asking for trouble. Now, the Master is going to know that things aren't the same in Sunnydale if he finds out that eight vampires have been killed in three nights and someone or something is probably going to come looking for me. And if they think that you were involved in any way, they're going to come looking for you too!"  
Angel looked away from her, not wanting to meet her accusing gaze.  
Kendra took a breath and calmed down slightly, realizing that she had gone overboard. After all, this was the individual who had saved her life and had risked his own to help millions of people by trying to thwart the Harvest. When she spoke again, her tone was softer. "You said that you were waiting for someone... the Slayer you said..." Kendra hesitated. "I don't know how and I don't know exactly why, but I was brought here for a reason; maybe it is to help this world like Ms. Calendar said, maybe not. All I do know is that I am here, now, and I plan to do something about what's going on. With or without your help."  
And with those last words, Kendra stood up and stalked towards the door. But before she could place her hand on the knob, the heel of the boot on her left foot broke from underneath her and she fell to the floor. The sound of her rear end coming in contact with the floor echoed throughout the apartment.  
Amused, Angel looked at Kendra for a few seconds before bursting out into laughter. Kendra was shocked by the sound she heard coming from Angel. He was laughing! Genuinely laughing! At her, nonetheless!  
Placing an annoyed look on her face, she looked back and her eyes shot daggers at him.  
Realizing that Kendra was less that pleased with his reaction, he calmed down. Wow!, he thought. I can't remember the last time I laughed that hard. Maybe having her around won't be so bad after all.  
Rising from his chair, Angel walked over to the teenager on the floor and offered her his hand. She grasped his arm and let him pull her up. When she was standing he said, "You were right about what you said. I am involved and there's nothing I can do to change what I've done." Kendra smiled slightly at him. "We'll check out the Bronze." Then, he looked Kendra up and down. She wondered what he was looking for before smiling sheepishly at his next comment: "But first, we need to get you some clothes."  
  
Kendra paid the bouncer and walked into the club, followed by Angel. She entered wearing a somewhat tight, red, shimmering dress with black, leather boots that went to the knee. Kendra walked past a man dressed as Superman with a lady wearing a skintight devil costume. In fact, many of the customers were wearing costumes due to the fact that it was Friday the 13th and one got a discount if one were dressed up. However, even though there was a somewhat festive appearance, the ambiance of her environment made Kendra feel slightly uneasy. She could sense the evil that lurked in the shadows of this nightclub. Surveying her surroundings, Kendra remarked on how everyone was apparently completely oblivious to their present danger.  
The plan was that they would scour the Bronze, in search of potential victims that the alleged vampires could possibly prey on.  
Turning to face Angel, Kendra said in a sort of shout-whisper, "Maybe we should split up."  
Angel nodded in agreement.  
Kendra walked through the crowd of teenagers towards the bar, thinking that it would be a good place to view the rest of the club. As she crossed the room, Kendra noticed how some of the male patrons of the club were staring at her. She found this quite interesting, being not used to such attention. However, Kendra began to blush slightly when she noticed that some of the men were checking out her back. She realized now that the dress Angel had bought barely covered her rear end. She sighed internally. It looked longer on the mannequin, thought Kendra. Maybe it would have helped if I had tried it on first. Angel had insisted that they purchase anything that she liked, without trying it on first so that they could make it to the Bronze before it closed.  
Kendra was paying so much attention to the guys looking at her that she didn't even realize it before it was too late that she had just run into someone. Immediately after the collision, Kendra blurted out an apology. The girl that she had run into turned her head to Kendra, her long, brown hair swaying around her shoulders.  
The brunette exclaimed, "Just who do you think you-" But her words were cut short when she took in Kendra's appearance.  
Kendra suddenly recognized the brunette. "Cordelia, right?" she asked tentatively.  
Cordelia smiled warmly at her. "Right." Grabbing Kendra by the arm, she guided her to a small table. "I don't believe that we've met."  
"Um, my name is Kendra," offered Kendra. She then added, "I'm new in town."  
"New or not, you certainly know how to dress," complimented Cordelia, apparently still impressed with Kendra's outfit. Cordelia had an eye for expensive clothing. "What make is that dress? Dior? And those boots... Are they Versace?"  
"Well... um... I'm not exactly sure," replied Kendra, a little nervous.  
"Oh, whatever," stated Cordelia. "We definitely need to trade fashion tips."  
"Uh, sure?" replied Kendra, trying to come up with something to say.  
"Great," replied Cordelia. "We'll talk at school." And she turned away from Kendra to head back to her group of sheep that were considered her friends.  
Kendra let out a breath and relaxed, slumping slightly against the table. But then a notion struck her: What did I just do? I just told Cordelia that I would trade fashion tips with her at school? What was I thinking? Oh yeah... I wasn't. Kendra sighed and inwardly smiled. Now that I think about it, it wouldn't be such a bad idea. Going to school that is (not trading fashion tips with her). It would certainly give me something to do other than waste my time day in and day out at Angel's. I do not have to perform the duties of the Slayer anymore because I will never be the Slayer in this reality. Thus, I could focus on my studies and perhaps every now and then make the vampires in this town think twice about feeding.  
As Kendra's attention focused back upon her current mission, she suddenly felt like she was being watched. It felt like someone's eyes were roaming over her body, trying to pierce her skin in order to seek out her depths. She shivered as she felt a presence behind her. She heard soft moaning as the song #1 Crush by Garbage started playing.  
I would die for you  
I would die for you  
I've been dying just to feel you by my side  
To know that you're mine  
Someone grabbed Kendra by her arm, spun her around and pulled her into a dance. Kendra contemplated kneeing this guy in the groin, until he pulled her insistently to him, pressing his body against hers. All of a sudden, she was reminded of her dream. Looking up at the man who held her body so firmly, she realized that the individual wore a mask.  
I will cry for you  
I will cry for you  
I will wash away your pain with all my tears  
And drown your fears  
As they continued to dance, Kendra was aware of the fact that the person she was dancing with was radiating an evil energy. She could feel this energy washing over her. Looking more closely at his face, Kendra noticed his eyes; that's when she figured out whom it was she was dancing with. This insight caused Kendra to let out a soft gasp. But then, she felt something else; something she wasn't quite sure of. She could sense that it had something to do with the energy that was emanating from him.  
I will pray for you  
I will pray for you  
I will sell my soul for something pure and true  
Someone like you  
The masked individual lowered his head and whispered slowly into her ear, "Alone at last."  
See your face every place that I walk in  
Hear your voice every time that I'm talking  
You will believe in me  
And I will never be ignored  
"I had wondered whether you were ever going to show up again," stated the masked man.  
Kendra swallowed hard.  
I will burn for you  
Feel pain for you  
I will twist a knife and bleed my aching heart  
And tear it apart  
Kendra could feel his hands travelling the length of her back, only to rest them very closely to the part that most of the men in the Bronze had been focusing upon earlier. The desire to hit him squarely in the jaw rose up inside of her. Yet, something was holding her back.  
I will lie for you  
Beg and steal for you  
I will crawl on hands and knees until you see  
You're just like me  
It was like his presence and his gaze riveted her to where she was. She had somewhat felt the same way when she had first lain eyes upon him after arriving in this universe. But now, what she was experiencing was much more intense. What's happening to me?  
Violate all the love that I'm missing  
Throw away all the pain that I'm living  
You will believe in me  
And I can never be ignored  
Her breathing became shallow.  
I would die for you  
I would kill for you  
"What's your name?" he asked softly.  
I will steal for you  
I'd do time for you  
Before even thinking about it, she closed her eyes and whispered, "Kendra."  
I will wait for you  
I'd make room for you  
She could sense him smile beneath his mask.  
I'd sink ships for you  
"Kendra," he reiterated slowly.  
To be close to you  
Her name just seemed to roll off his tongue.  
To be part of you  
He spoke her name again, but this time, it seemed to her as if his tongue itself was caressing the name when he spoke it.  
Cause I believe in you  
"Kendra..."  
I believe in you  
She couldn't think straight; her mind was clouded. She was falling...  
I would die for you  
  
Angel, in the meanwhile, had been checking out the crowd for people that would most likely be chosen by the suspected vampires. He had seen one girl that looked especially like she was just asking to be bit. Angel knew her name to be Cordelia Chase. She was, from what he knew, the most popular girl at Sunnydale High School. He believed her to be a potential victim because she always wore bright, shiny clothing, which vampires are attracted to.  
Angel had been a little surprised to see Kendra talking to Cordelia at one point. What could she possibly have to talk about with Cordelia Chase? he had asked himself. But, he had just shrugged the thought off, not even considering the possible reasons and had headed upstairs.  
Once upstairs, Angel again checked out the crowd and his eyes fell upon a petite, redheaded adolescent. She wasn't wearing the most fashionable attire, but there was an innocence and purity that he could sense from her. He would keep an eye on this one because he could practically smell her naïveté. To Angel, she seemed like a somewhat weak, yet tantalizing prey. Making a note of this, he turned away from her.  
Angel rested his hands upon the railing and looked down at the dance floor in an attempt to locate Kendra. Unfortunately, he was not able to spot her.  
Angel was about to remove his gaze from the dance floor when he noticed that there was a masked guy dancing with some girl who wore the exact same dress that Kendra had been wearing. Hmph, thought Angel. And that saleslady said the dress was a one-of-a-kind. I should ask for my money back.  
He was about to look away from the couple, not wanting to intrude on their privacy, when something about the guy in the mask seemed familiar. Something about his build and the way he moved. His gut was telling him something. Bingo! realized Angel. He's a vampire. Angel looked harder at the dancing couple. Getting a better look, Angel was somewhat startled when he was able to discern that the girl actually was Kendra! But as he observed her, he noticed the glazed over look upon her face. Angel frowned when he noticed how tightly the vampire seemed to be holding her against his body. And he most certainly did not like the way the vampire was moving its hands over her body.  
Different thoughts were rushing through Angel's mind. Who was this vampire that she was dancing with? It was one thing to make yourself look like susceptible prey, but it was another to throw yourself into the arms of a vampire. There was something wrong about this picture. Angel knew that he had come into contact with this vampire before, but he couldn't remember his identity. Besides, to him, after spending so much time with her, Kendra did not look like herself at all. Maybe the vampire has cast some sort of spell on her, he contemplated. Still, it does seem like a lot of work for just a meal. Angel figured that he should go down there, just to get a better look. He knew very well that Kendra could take care of herself, but if she was under some sort of spell, she might not be aware of it.  
Walking down the winding stairs with slight urgency, Angel walked onto the dance floor, trying to look over the sea of swaying bodies in order to find Kendra and her dance partner. When he came upon them, Angel felt the desire to throw the vampire across the room, for there was Kendra leaning against the vampire as if in a trance, with the vampire's left hand on her thigh, inching his way up, beneath her dress. Angel felt the demon within him stir as his anger rose.  
Walking up to the couple, Angel yanked Kendra away from the vampire gently, but insistently. As soon as he pulled her away, Kendra seemed to somewhat snap out of her trance. The vampire immediately reacted to being separated from Kendra and reached out for her, only to be shoved back slightly by Angel.  
A low growl originated from beneath the mask. Then it seemed to Angel that the masked vampire sneered. "So Angel, you finally have decided to come out from whatever rock you had crawled under."  
Angel then realized the identity of this masked vampire. "Xander," he said venomously and with disgust.  
"In the flesh," retorted Xander while bowing slightly, a hint of humor in his voice. "So, do you have a good reason for interrupting our dance, or do you always go around interfering in other people's business?"  
Coming out of her stupor, Kendra realized that there was an obvious history between the two vampires and perhaps Xander's words held more significance to them especially. Huh, she thought to herself. Even in this reality, Xander isn't particularly fond of Angel. But before she could consider this new possibility any further, Angel tightly clamped his left hand on her right wrist.  
Giving Xander a malicious look, Angel stated to the other vampire, "The girl's with me."  
"Really?" retorted Xander slowly while tilting his head in a thoughtful manner. "Are you sure that you have the right girl? 'Cause she's been alone since she got here." Xander snickered a bit. "That is, before I came along, of course." He then looked Kendra up and down with a hunger that had nothing to do with his desire for blood.  
"Like I said," began Angel, while pulling Kendra behind him and staring fiercely at Xander, "the girl's with me."  
Xander then stepped up to Angel and looking him straight in the eye, whispered slowly and menacingly, "Do you really think that you could keep her from me?"  
Angel stepped closer to Xander until they were just millimeters apart from each other and whispered threateningly, "Try me."  
By this time, many of the dancing couples were staring at the trio. Kendra became aware of this fact and looked at the two vampires with slight distress. The last thing she wanted to do was cause a scene and draw attention to Angel and herself.  
Removing her wrist from his grip, she said, "Let's just go, Angel."  
Angel ripped his gaze away from Xander and looked at Kendra. He could see that her eyes were pleading with him. He conceded to Kendra's wish and nodded his head, but before turning away, Angel snarled at Xander.  
Xander did not look the least bit intimidated and actually ignored him. Instead of paying attention to Angel, Xander winked at Kendra and said, "See you soon," before disappearing into the crowd.  
Kendra let out a sigh and headed out of the club. Once outside, Kendra was glad for the cool night air that hit her face. Taking a deep breath, she turned around to face Angel, unsure of what his reaction would be. She looked at his face carefully, but saw no sign of what he could possibly be thinking. Actually, in truth, she could not even imagine what he was thinking. What would she be thinking if she were in his place? The way she had acted had not exactly been stellar and even she did not know what to think of it. She had expected him to say something, but he merely walked past her.  
Distress crossed Kendra's face as the thought crossed her mind that he was leaving her there, wanting nothing to do with her. However, he stopped after a few paces, turned around and said, "You coming?" Slightly relieved, Kendra strode in step beside him and they walked in silence until they reached Angel's apartment.  
She had hoped that the walking and the night air would clear her head, but when she entered the apartment, her thoughts were not any more clear. She still was not sure about what had transpired at the Bronze. Kendra had appreciated Angel's interference because who knows how far Xander would have taken things? There was something about his mere presence that made her feel strange. She did not feel like herself when she was with him. But, she could not let Angel know that. There was a weakness that she experienced when around Xander and she did not want Angel to know any of her weaknesses.  
Looking at him carefully, Kendra was startled when he actually spoke, "So I assume that you had a plan?"  
His tone held no inflection in it. To Kendra, it sounded like he was completely apathetic. She smiled meekly. "Um, right. I was trying to make him believe that I was easy prey," she offered quietly, not wanting to meet his gaze. I wonder if he believes me.  
Angel merely nodded his head before walking away from her and into his bedroom, signifying the end of the discussion.  
Kendra slipped out of her new dress and boots and put on her new silk pajamas, their softness comforting her. She was now glad that Angel had insisted on nothing but the best. And as she lay down on her cot and closed her eyes, Kendra's thoughts turned to Angel. His response to her actions had surprised her. She had half expected him to get mad at her... or something... I'm not sure. Maybe he simply didn't care. But that doesn't make any sense. If he didn't care, he wouldn't have interfered, her thoughts argued. The possibility that Angel could care less about her made Kendra feel slightly uneasy. With that last thought, Kendra's world tumbled into disturbing dreams.  
  
Angel undressed and crawled into bed, his mind going over the events of the night again and again. The way that he had reacted to Kendra's dancing with Xander perplexed him. As Angel nestled into his bed, he could not understand why he had gotten so upset. Granted, he had absolutely no love for Xander, but he knew that it was more than that. He had felt extremely protective of this girl who's scent was all over his apartment; the girl who refused to sleep in his bed. I couldn't even begin to explain in words what I'm feeling because... I'm not even sure that I understand myself. His feelings, to some extent, reminded him of how he felt when he had first laid eyes upon the Vampire Slayer, Buffy. Yet, it's not quite the same, is it? his thoughts rationalized. Something seemed to be nagging at Angel. There's something I'm missing, he thought before plunging forth into guilt-racked dreams that were painted with blood.  
  
***  
  
Xander entered the back room of the Bronze and threw his mask into a corner, irritated. Catching a glimpse of the Master in the shadows, Xander approached his sire.  
"She was here, tonight," stated Xander.  
"Who was here?" asked the Master as he sat down upon his chair.  
"The girl I told you about."  
The Master looked at Xander. "The one you saw after you killed Ms. Calendar?"  
Xander nodded. "She was wearing this amazing red dress..." and he paused, remembering the curves of her body, her scent, and the way her skin had felt under his fingertips. But then, he recalled the events that had followed. Xander sneered. "And you wouldn't believe who decided to interrupt our dance!" The Master cocked his eyebrow. "That pathetic excuse for a vampire, Angel."  
The Master now sat upright in his chair, his curiosity obviously piqued.  
"He wrenched her away from me and blazingly declared that she was with him!" continued Xander, somewhat infuriated. He began to pace the room in front of the Master. "I mean, who did he think he was, taking her away from me?"  
"Now that is interesting," stated the Master pensively.  
Xander did not seem to hear him and continued his pacing. "Just because he was Angelus and had been big and bad back in his day doesn't mean that he can just waltz into the Bronze and steal her away from me!"  
The Master gave Xander a calculating look. "You speak as is if this girl belongs to you," commented the Master.  
Xander's pacing ceased. He appeared to be reflecting on something. For a few seconds, he was deathly still until he spoke softly, "Yes. That's it."  
The Master looked upon Xander carefully before declaring, "Enough with this! I don't know why you are getting so incensed over this girl, but that's quite enough. If this girl was somehow affiliated with Ms. Calendar and is now with Angel, it is possible that there may be a link between the two. Perhaps Angel did have a hand in the destruction of the vessel and the closing of the Hellmouth."  
Xander forgot about Kendra for an instant and considered what the Master had said. The idea that Angel might have played a hand in the resealing of the Hellmouth had been a theory that Xander had had ever since he had become a vampire. He had never liked the way that Angel seemed to lurk around Sunnydale. Xander had always felt that he had been up to something, plotting against his own kind, under the influence of his "soul."  
"The thing is, we don't know anything about this girl, thus we shouldn't leap to any conclusions," stated the Master. "She could be perfectly harmless." But, then he thought about how only a few days ago, eight vampires had disappeared in three nights. "But then again, she could be as dangerous as a Slayer. If something should arise, we will have to deal with this girl and Angel if he is involved."  
"Would you like me to assess her potential as a threat?" volunteered Xander, eagerly.  
"No," replied the Master. "I need you to run a couple of errands for me out of the country." And the Master laid out the plan for Xander.  
Just before Xander was about to leave for his new mission, the Master asked, "Did you happen to come across this girl's name?"  
"Kendra," replied Xander before leaving the room in a hurry to reach the outgoing boat that would commence his journey.  
The Master languidly leaned back in his chair. Something about Xander's sudden infatuation with this girl intrigued the Master. Yet, there was something more to all of this. He could feel it. It was as if he had a very small piece from a large puzzle. Hopefully the task that he had sent Xander on would prove to be fruitful and then he could deal with the potential threat of Angel and this girl, "Kendra." 


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten 

Kendra clasped her books tightly to her chest and gazed up at the building that loomed in front of her. Ascending the steps of Sunnydale High School, she looked upon all the students that were huddled in groups talking amongst themselves and wondered how any of them were actually able to prosper academically in this absolutely social setting. Entering the school, Kendra walked through the halls that were packed with teenagers and headed to her homeroom. _I wonder if it would not have been wiser to have attended a private school instead_, she considered.

The day after the incident in the Bronze, Kendra had informed Angel that she would like to attend high school. He had seemed absolutely positive towards the idea and had even opted to acquire some documents for her. That is, create her an identity. Her new name was Kendra Solun and she had been born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana by her adoptive parents, Mark and Lucy Solun who just recently died in a car accident.

Kendra had studied during the summer in order to pass some entrance exams that would enable her attend Sunnydale High. She had had a lot of catching up to do because the education in the United States was different than what she had learned in her own home country. Her Watcher had taught her what she had needed to survive and not American history, algebra, microeconomics, and so forth. Still, despite her lack of knowledge in many of the required subjects, she had studied diligently and had managed to excel in all of them.

Entering her homeroom, Kendra took a seat in the front of class, determined not to emulate the apparent attitude of many of the students. Placing her books on the desk, Kendra's mind began to wander as she waited for the class to start. _Maybe it would have been a better idea if I had not arrived to class thirty minutes early._ She inwardly remarked upon how even the teacher was not in class yet. Sighing quietly, she slumped slightly in her seat and closed her eyes, wondering once again if maybe this whole alternate universe was just a really bad dream.

Kendra's eyes snapped open as she heard the door open. Turning her head, she cocked an eyebrow slightly as an individual entered the classroom. The individual finally noticed her and seemed to be a little surprised at the sight of her. "And I thought that I was the only person who came to homeroom early."

Kendra gazed upon the person in front of her and it suddenly occurred to her that she knew this person. "Oz?" she asked uncertainly.

"Yeah," he replied. A slow smile crept upon his face. "Let me guess?"

"Guess what?"

"You're psychic, right?"

Kendra laughed nervously at the question. "Um, no. Why would you say that?"

"Well, you knew my name just like that and I haven't even introduced myself."

She laughed nervously again. Clearing her throat, Kendra wracked her head trying to come up with a good explanation. Mentally, she was kicking herself for making the same mistake that she would constantly make when seeing the faces of people that she once knew. "Well, actually, when I was coming into school I heard someone holler your name."

Oz nodded slowly, trying to recall this particular memory that seemed to be so elusive.

"I'm new in Sunnydale," said Kendra while standing up and extending her hand. "My name's Kendra."

Oz grasped her hand tightly. "Nice to meet you. The name's Oz, as you already know. So, where are you from? It's not everyday that new people show up in Sunnydale. This town doesn't exactly have the best reputation."

"Well, actually, I'm from New Orleans. I moved her during the summer to stay with some family because my parents were killed in a car accident at the end of May," she said, blurting out her rehearsed explanation.

"Oh," replied Oz softly, looking at his feet. "I'm sorry about your parents."

"It's fine," said Kendra. "It doesn't bother me as much as it used-"

Kendra's sentence was cut short by the classroom door opening.

"Now let's see what type of losers decided to come to class early so that they can kiss up to the teach-" Cordelia stopped short in mid-sentence once she saw Kendra and Oz. Her group of friends looked over Cordelia's shoulder. "Oh hey!" she exclaimed once she recognized Kendra. "So you got stuck in this wacked out homeroom, huh?"

Kendra smiled and nodded her head, wondering what exactly the words "wacked out" meant.

"What's your name again?" asked Cordelia.

"Kendra."

"Right, right. So, tell me, who's that guy you were with at the Bronze during the summer? 'Cause he's like a total babe!"

"Guy? What guy?" Kendra asked, trying to come up with a decent answer.

"You know, that guy you left with that night, after he got into an argument about you with that other guy in the mask," responded Cordelia. Her sheep began to whisper amongst themselves, apparently interested in the fact that two guys would be fighting over Kendra.

_Great! So Cordelia and probably countless others noticed my little episode with Angel and Xander._ Kendra felt embarrassment creeping up upon her. Thus, she delivered the best possible answer she could come up with: "The guy is my brother, Angel."

"Brother, huh?" Cordelia began to nod her head until what Kendra said sank in and stumped her for a bit.

"Umm, we're adopted," added Kendra quickly.

"Oh, right! Of course!" Well, that just got the sheep whispering some more. Then something else dawned upon Cordelia. "But, how come I've seen him around Sunnydale for over a year and I've never seen you before this summer?"

_Damn. She's not as stupid as she looks._ "Well, our parents died in a car accident in late spring and I came to live with him," replied Kendra.

Cordelia nodded her head at this information. "So, is he seeing anybody?"

Kendra sighed softly, not certain about where to go from here. Suddenly, Oz interjected with, "Say, Cordelia, I think that Mark was looking for you."

"Really?" Cordelia squealed with enthusiasm. Turning to Kendra, she said quickly, "We'll talk later," and rushed out of the classroom with her entourage following closely behind.

As soon as Cordelia had exited the room, Kendra heaved a sigh of relief and slumped into a chair. She looked up at Oz. "Thank you."

Oz shrugged his shoulders. "It looked like you needed a lifeline, so I opted to throw you one."

Kendra reflected upon how humorous it was that she could do battle against vampires and demons without breaking a sweat, yet she could not socially react to an adolescent conversation.

"It takes stamina to keep up with Cordelia Chase. Trust me, I know." Putting a hand gently upon her shoulder, he continued, "You fared quite well."

Kendra looked up at the teenage boy and smiled. "I'm not really used to people like her. When I was living in New Orleans, I didn't go to school. I was tutored at home." Well, that was partially true.

"You've never been to school?" asked Oz, removing his hand from her shoulder.

Kendra shook her head. "No. Never."

"Well, you couldn't have a better guide to show you the ropes of Sunnydale High School. That is, if you think my services would be of use to you?"

As she smiled again her cheeks turned a shade of crimson, but it did not appear as if Oz noticed. "I would very much appreciate it."

After a few weeks, Kendra finally became adjusted to high school life. However, she mostly kept to herself, her previous alienation from society still having an effect. Most of the student body had somewhat of an inexplicable vibe about her that she should be left alone. The only person that she truly conversed with was Oz. Occasionally when Kendra ran into Cordelia Chase, she would discuss fashion with her, since Kendra had done research in accordance with American pop culture. But, these conversations with Cordelia were few and far between.

While Kendra was making this adjustment to adolescence within a social structure, Angel had opted to take a trip. He had told Kendra that he was seeking out some shaman in Asia who could possibly explain her sudden appearance and memory loss. He had left a few days after she had started school. Angel's investigation into her manifestation made Kendra worry slightly, but were he to discover anything conclusive, she would have to face that reality only when it occurred. For the meantime, high school was her primary focus.

During the first week of school, Kendra began to realize that the study hall was not exactly the best place to do her homework. Figuring that she merely needed some adjustment to the incredibly social aspects of study hall, Kendra withstood the annoyance. However, after the third week, she became fed up. Kendra could not believe how much these teenagers seemed to be obsessed with who was in a relationship with whom and what was the nature of the relationship, be it sexual or sentimental. Thus, Kendra opted to venture to the library in search of refuge from the social din that was study hall.

As she walked into the library, Kendra was mildly stunned by the sound of silence. Immediately she knew that this would be her new haven. Walking up to the front desk, Kendra cleared her throat, attempting to catch the attention of the librarian, who happened to have his back to her. When he turned around, Kendra blinked twice in recognition, inwardly kicking herself (not the first time since she had arrived in this alternate universe) for not remembering who, in fact, was the librarian.

"Mr. Giles," she breathed.

"Yes?" he asked in his thick English accent.

Kendra looked upon the Englishman, somewhat stumped by his presence. Gazing upon him brought back memories of the universe she was no longer a part of. A sudden yearning for everything that she knew to be familiar overwhelmed her for a moment. When he started giving her strange look due to her lack of a response, she quelled her feelings in order to regain composure.

"Is there something I can help you with?"

Clearing her throat once again, Kendra found her voice again and finally responded, "I'm a new student and I was wondering if I could transfer my study period from study hall to the library?"

Now it was Mr Giles' turn to be stumped. "You want to do work in the library?" he asked incredulously.

"I find that there is too much social interaction amongst the students, which creates an inefficient area of study. I would prefer to avoid such inefficiency by performing my studies in the library. That is, if it is permitted."

Giles just gave her a bewildered look. No student had ever requested to work in the library. In fact, he barely saw any students. They were all too wrapped up in their own melodramas to even consider reading a book, let alone setting foot within the walls of the library. But there was a nice red-haired girl who came every now and then to update his computer and catalogue some books.

"Well, no one has ever made such a request. I would have to check with the administration, but I don't see it being a problem. You are more than welcomed to spend your time here."

"Is it alright if I study right now?"

"Why of course. In fact, I'll go see the principal right now, concerning your request." Walking from behind the counter, he made his way to the doors before stopping and looking back at her. "Are you going to be alright here by yourself? I mean, is there anything that you need help with?"

"No," she replied. "I'm fine." And yet he could sense that she wanted to say more, so he lingered a moment, wondering if she would say whatever it was. But, she merely turned away and went to sit down at one of the tables, removing her books from her bag. Giles turned back to the door and exited the library shaking his head, wondering if it was just his imagination.

After Kendra had sufficiently studied her math and geography, she rose to use the washroom. As she walked by the counter, something caught her eye to her right. Turning, Kendra laid eyes upon a meshed wall. Behind the mesh was an ordinary looking room with shelves filled with books and another door to the left. There was nothing exceptional about what was before her, and yet something about it was nagging at her. There was something that she was missing about the whole scene.

Approaching the wall, Kendra laid her hands upon the cold wall, curling her fingers around the mesh. There was something off about what she was looking at. Reaching for the door to this room, she noticed that there was a lock upon it. The fact that there was a big lock upon a supposedly innocent room in a high school library aroused her suspicion even more. Without even thinking about the consequences or what Giles' reaction would be, she broke open the lock, overcome with the need to solve the mystery of this room.

Opening the door, Kendra walked towards the first shelf to her left. Instinctively, with her right hand, she reached for the ninth book on the top shelf and the fourth book on the fifth shelf with her left. Simultaneously, she pulled on both books and reassuringly heard the reverberation of wheels turning and cranking. The whole wall upon which the shelves were backed against swivelled forward to reveal what lay on the other side. Kendra's jaw dropped at the site before her: the wall was covered with weapons! There were different types of swords, crossbows, daggers, stakes, axes, etc.

Closing her mouth, Kendra surveyed the weapons appreciatively. A smile began to emerge upon her face. So Mr. Giles appears to be more than simply a mild-mannered librarian. Kendra felt that she deserved a pat on the back for remembering this particular shelf layout. There was a certain way that some Watchers tended to lay out things so that to the untrained eye, everything appeared normal. However, Kendra, having trained incredibly hard to be a Slayer, was able to spot the configuration even if she had not noticed it right away. Her own Watcher, Mr. Zabuto had used a similar configuration when attempting to conceal weapons and dangerous texts. A particular sword caught Kendra's attention. Reaching out to it, she realized that it looked exactly like the sword she had given to Buffy when she had set out to defeat Angelus. I wonder if she ever succeeded in killing him, she thought as her fingers caressed the blade lightly. It seemed bizarre contemplating the possibility of the killing of the man whose apartment she slept in.

Suddenly, Kendra's keen hearing picked up the sound of footsteps coming towards the library. Granted, it was possible that the footsteps did not belong to Mr. Giles, but Kendra was not prepared to take that risk. Besides, should it turn out to be him, she would have a lot of explaining to do. Hastily withdrawing her hand, Kendra accidentally nicked her right index finger on the point of the blade. She cursed softly under her breath as she pulled a lever and restored the wall to its appearance of normality. Closing the meshed door behind her, Kendra hurried over to her knapsack and dumped the broken lock in the first pouch. As she was zipping up the front pouch, Mr. Giles entered the library.

"I apologize for taking so long," said Mr. Giles as he approached the teenager. "The principal didn't believe me when I requested for documentation pertaining to a transfer of study period. He even accused me of playing some kind of 'British joke.'" Mr. Giles seemed a little offended by this slight, but he quickly dismissed it with a shrug of his shoulders. "Anyway, these are the forms that need to be filled out," he continued, handing her a couple of sheets of paper.

Kendra grasped the papers and stuffed them quickly into her knapsack. "Thank you Mr. Giles."

"You're welcome, Miss. uh-"

"'Solun,' sir. My first name is Kendra."

"Pleased to meet you Kendra."

Silence filled the library after Mr. Giles' last comment. And for the first time since he had entered the library, Giles suddenly felt that something was amiss here. Shifting his gaze away from the adolescent in front of him, Giles looked over the library, wondering why he was feeling like all was not as it seemed.

Kendra cleared her throat and grabbed her knapsack before stating, "Well, I have a class. I look forward to seeing you Mr. Giles."

"Likewise, Kendra." Mr. Giles smiled warmly at the young woman while she exited his library.

After rounding a couple of corners, Kendra stopped in front of a garbage bin and dumped the remains of the lock. _Now what?_ she asked herself. _Maybe Mr. Giles won't notice that the lock is gone._ She quickly dismissed that thought. If he was indeed a Watcher, which she now believed him to be, and he was as good as she theorized, then there was no way that he would not notice that the lock, that now sat in the garbage in front of her, was missing. Kendra sighed out loud. She would have to think things through the next time she felt like breaking into somewhere.  
Walking away from the garbage can, Kendra's mind sunk deep into thought. The revelation of the wall covered in weapons was a new consideration. _If Mr. Giles is indeed a Watcher, what is he doing here without a Slayer to guide?_ Possible explanations went through her mind, but none of them could truly answer her question. She would have to know more.  
Rounding another corner, Kendra was so deep in thought that she did not even notice that someone was following her until the individual grabbed her arm lightly. Rounding on her would-be aggressor, Kendra was surprised to only find Oz grinning at her.  
"Hey Wendy, how's Never Never Land?" he asked, his grin getting wider by the second.  
Kendra looked around. "Who's Wendy? And what is Never Land?"  
"Never Never Land," corrected Oz. His smile was huge now. "You know, Peter Pan?"  
Kendra shook her head in ignorance.  
"Wow, you must really have had a deprived childhood if you don't know any of the classics," stated Oz quite matter-of-factly. He had made previous comments to her regarding classic children's stories, but she never knew what he was referring to. Gazing at the young lady, something dawned upon him. "What are you doing tonight?"  
"I'm going to study for Spanish class and do some Math problems. Also, I'm going to start the Economics project."  
Oz considered her words. "Well, I'm taking Spanish and you're in the advanced Math class, right?"  
"Yes," replied Kendra slowly, wondering where Oz was going with this.  
"And isn't the Economics project due in two months?"  
"Yes," she said again, still not sure about his train of thought.  
"So, you could, theoretically speaking, start that tomorrow, right?"  
"Yes, however I do follow a strict schedule when it comes to my school work."  
"Are you saying that you are incapable of differing from your rigid schedule?" he asked, the silly grin still plastered upon his face.  
"Well, it's not like I am incapable, I just prefer-"  
"Great, so you can come over to my place tonight. We can study for Math and Spanish. You're Math class is basically the equivalent of mine, so there should be no problems there. Once we're done with that, I can begin introducing you to your lost childhood. You'll like it. I promise."  
Comprehension dawned upon Kendra's face. She smiled at Oz. What could she say to such an offer? "Um…"  
"Great!" exclaimed Oz. "I'll meet you at your locker after school." And with those last words he walked away from her, planning the evening ahead. Kendra merely stood in the middle of the hall wondering what she had just gotten herself into.


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

Xander gently placed the scrolls in the Master's hands. The Master gave a slight sigh of satisfaction. "Finally," he whispered, "we can start afresh." Removing one of the scrolls from its casing, the Master unraveled it, placed it delicately on his lap, and gazed at it lovingly. Looking back up at Xander, he commented, "You've done well, boy."

Xander could no longer suppress the huge grin that was threatening to overtake his face. "I am glad you are pleased."

The Master glanced behind Xander before asking, "And what of your two 'associates'?" By associates, he meant "lackeys."

Xander shrugged. "Some 'Champion' was guarding the scrolls. Naturally, I sent my associates in first. By the time I got in there, both of them had been turned to dust. But, thankfully, those two weren't completely useless. They had managed to injure this Champion guy enough so that killing him was a piece of cake."

"Good help is so hard to find these days," remarked the Master regretfully. "You seem to be the only capable one out of all these other so-called vampires. That's why I want you to deal with this new development in Sunnydale."

"New development?" echoed Xander questioningly. The first thought that entered his mind was, _Maybe it's about her_. Though he had not voiced it to the Master, she was all he had really thought about while attempting to accomplish his mission for the past few months. At times, his thoughts had been focused on his mission. He and his lackeys had had to chase that Champion over two continents just to get at those scrolls. Then there were times when he had thought about Willow and all the delicious things he was going to do to her once he got back Sunnydale. Other times, he had thought about Angel and how he would just love to get his hands on him. But, in the end, his thoughts always came back to the girl. The touch of her warm skin, the way her body had responded to his own, and, especially, the way she smelled. Her scent had seemed to linger in his nostrils for weeks after their last encounter.

"A situation has arisen and needs to be dealt with. However, it is a job that needs to be handled with finesse."

"Are we finally taking out Angel?"

The Master looked at Xander hard. "Not everything is about Angel," he snapped. "That worthless excuse for a vampire has been out of the country for quite some time now. He hasn't been seen since your incident at the Bronze." The Master paused, allowing his follower to absorb this information. "And the answer is no: that girl of yours has not been seen since that incident as well. She probably ran off with Angel when he fled. You will not waste any more time thinking about this girl," said the Master, reading Xander's thoughts. Clearing his throat, the Master continued, "I need you to handle this latest situation. There are only two nights left and it is absolutely necessary that someone competent deals with this new player."

"New player?" asked Xander, cocking his eyebrow with interest. "Tell me what needs to be done."

The Master smiled at his disciple.

Kendra withdrew her books from her locker and placed them into her knapsack, preparing for her walk home from school. As she was closing her locker, she suddenly noticed Oz standing right next to her.

"Hey, you shouldn't sneak up on people like that," she commented, even though she had known that he was there the entire time.

"Sorry," he apologized. "Listen, I can't talk too long, but I just wanted to let you know that I won't be able to get together tonight."

For the past five weeks, the two of them had been getting together every Thursday to watch classic movies like The Wizard of Oz, Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland, etc. Kendra really enjoyed spending time with Oz. He was funny in a weird sort of way that she found soothing. She had never had a real friend before, but as the weeks went by, she found herself wishing that she had experienced friendship when she had been younger. She had not felt lonely at the time, but after being in this alternate reality, she did not think that she would want to be so alone again.

"Well, perhaps we could do it tomorrow night," suggested Kendra. "I could possibly rearrange my homework schedule and commence my trigonometry tonight as opposed to-"

But Oz cut her off, "No. I can't do anything for the next couple of nights. There's something I need to take care of."

"Oh, okay," she replied softly, shifting her gaze away from him, not wanting her disappointment to be apparent.

However, Oz did not even seem to notice. "I'll see you next week, okay?" he said hurriedly before walking away from her, not even giving her the chance to respond.

Kendra watched him as he strolled swiftly through the hall, obviously in a rush to get somewhere. She brushed aside her feelings of disappointment and thought about the way Oz had just interacted with her. As she thought about it, she recognized that he had seemed very anxious about something. _Something is troubling him_, she thought. She considered following him and asking him what was bothering him, but decided against it. _I shouldn't meddle in his affairs. If he wants to share, then he will share._

As she passed through the library doors, Kendra's thoughts shifted to her purpose for being there. Approaching the table, she noticed out of her peripheral vision today's newspaper lying on the counter. Picking up the paper, she was about to search for the appropriate section, when her gaze fell upon an article that was circled with a red marker. She was just about to completely disregard it until she read the heading: "Local girl attacked by pack of wild dogs." The article detailed how this girl's body had been discovered by the police at around 2:00 AM last night. It appeared as if the girl had been brutally mutilated and somewhat eaten by a pack of wild dogs. The article finished with a statement from the chief of police advising the public to avoid all parks late at night and to report anything that could suggest the presence of wild dogs.

Kendra was so concentrated on the article that she did not even notice the person standing behind her until he cleared his throat. "Ahem," he uttered, making her start. Kendra turned around to see Mr. Giles looking down at her with interest. "Did you need something specific? I don't believe that you have study period after school."

"You are correct Mr. Giles. I was looking for the job section of the newspaper."

"First of all, you are perusing the wrong section," he stated before removing the newspaper from her hands. He handed her the Classifieds section.

"Thank you, sir. Do you mind if I borrow this for the day? I'll return it tomorrow."

"Not a problem," replied Giles.

As Kendra exited the library, Giles looked after her, the same questions crossing his mind that he had been asking himself since the first time this girl had decided to switch her study period to the library. For the past few weeks, she had been coming to the library as arranged. There was nothing out of the ordinary about this girl. She appeared to be quite diligent with her studies and always seemed to be well organized. On occasion, he would spy her reading one of his occult books when she had finished her homework early. However, she never commented upon her readings, thus Giles figured that she might just have a small interest in the occult.

But, besides all of that, he still felt it in his gut that there was something more to her than simply a quiet, studious teen. After her first visit, he had noticed that the lock to his storage/weapons area was missing. He knew that it had been in place in the morning, but he had not repeatedly checked it throughout the day. When he had returned to the library after meeting with the principal, he had felt like there was something off about his library. As soon as he realized that the lock was missing, Giles had opened up his secret compartment and looked it over to see if anything was missing. Upon closer inspection, the only thing that was different was a few drops of blood on one of his rare swords. A friend of his, Roger Zabuto, had given it to him just weeks before he had perished from an unknown, mystical disease. None of his weapons had been put into much use since he had relocated to Sunnydale, so he knew that that blood had not been there before.

Still, there was no way she could have removed the lock **and** found his secret compartment. She was but a mere teenager. Unless, there was more to her than meets the eye. _It wouldn't be the first time in Sunnydale_. Since that first day, he had inconspicuously kept a close eye on her whenever she came into the library. But she never did anything suspicious. She did not even glance at the meshed door or the shelves. Giles was beginning to believe that the girl was harmless and had, in fact, nothing to do with the lock's disappearance. The lock's removal could have occurred before she had arrived or perhaps even while she had gone to the bathroom. But then, if not her, then who? He could not have amassed a group of enemies because, as far as he knew, none of the potential dangers in Sunnydale were even aware of his existence.

_At any rate,_ thought Giles as he looked down at the encircled article and furrowed his brow, _there are more pressing issues._

"Well, thank you for your time," said Kendra with disappointment. She exited the flower shop just as the shopkeeper closed up behind her. Kendra let out a sigh as she crossed the street. She had been to over a dozen shops and stores, looking for a job, but to no avail. Nobody wanted to hire her. Most people explained the reason for this as being the fact that she had absolutely no experience in anything. She always wanted to respond with, "But I can dust a vampire in under 30 seconds." However, she always kept her mouth shut, knowing that the clerks and shopkeepers would just think her crazy. Even the places that would hire her, regardless of her inexperience (i.e. the local fast food restaurants) were just not in need of new staff. Most places told her to come back around Christmas time.

Walking down the nearly deserted streets of Sunnydale, Kendra passed the Magic Shop on her right and considered going in, seeing that the lights were still on, but noticing the "CLOSED" sign on the front door, she continued on her way. It was getting late and Kendra wanted to get home in time to finish her math homework. She turned right and headed down the alley next to the Magic Shop. Walking briskly, she noticed a woman exit the rear of the store. She was in her early thirties, with long flowing black hair that ended just above her waist. The woman was struggling with two huge bags that were overflowing. Kendra saw the woman teeter under the weight of her parcels and rushed over to help her. She easily took one of the bags from the woman.

"Oh, thank you," expressed the woman gratefully. "Of course I thought that I could handle all this stuff by myself." She smiled warmly at Kendra.

Thinking that this might be a good opportunity to inquire about possible employment, Kendra decided that she would introduce herself.

"My name's Kendra."

"Mine's Demeana," responded the woman.

But before Kendra could continue, the sound of snarling came from deeper within the alley. Demeana shifted the bag around and tried to get a better look at the source of this strange noise. _Sounds like a dog's down there,_ she thought. Scanning the alley, she suddenly noticed a pair of glowing, yellow eyes. She gasped in surprise as the eyes approached them slowly until the silhouette of a massive hairy body emerged from the shadows.

"By the Goddess," whispered Demeana.

By this point, Kendra's brain had finally snapped to attention. She had been momentarily stunned by the werewolf's presence. And then her mind made the connection: the newspaper article she had read! Of course! There were no wild dogs in Sunnydale. _Just a werewolf! Not that that's really any comfort_, she thought as she wracked her brain trying to recall everything she knew about werewolves.

Placing the bag on the ground, Kendra surveyed the present environment, searching for a weapon. The mini stake she kept on her body would not inflict enough damage on this 6 foot tall werewolf. Looking at the woman, Kendra noticed the hilt of some sort of weapon sticking out of the bag she was carrying.

"Can I borrow that?" asked Kendra as she grasped the hilt and withdrew the foot long dagger. _This will have to do._

Demeana did not even respond. She began to shrink away towards the store's back door.

"Wait, don't make any sudden movements," ordered Kendra.

Demeana froze. _What is that thing?_, she asked herself._ It must be some sort of wild dog? It couldn't possibly be…_

Kendra quickly put herself between the werewolf and Demeana. The werewolf barked violently at Kendra, and then, all of a sudden, pounced. Before its claws could rip into her, Kendra delivered a well-timed hook punch to its muzzle. The werewolf recoiled a little, but countered by lashing out again with a swipe of one its paws, knocking Kendra to the cement. _Ouch._ Hoisting herself up, Kendra scanned the ground for the dagger she had let go of when the werewolf hit her. Seeing it next to the dumpster to her left, she decided to make a dash for it. The werewolf lunged at her again, but anticipating this move, Kendra leapt into the air and flipped easily over the werewolf. She tucked, rolled and grabbed the dagger before getting up, poised to fight once more.

"Get inside the store!" she yelled to Demeana.

Demeana dropped her parcel and ran towards the back door, attracting the attention of the werewolf, who attempted to follow. But before it could reach her, Kendra threw the lid of a trash can at it, momentarily distracting the beast.

"Come on, hairball," she muttered under her breath.

The werewolf snarled, baring its deadly canines and lunged at her yet again. This time, Kendra expertly manipulated the dagger and slashed the werewolf just over its left eye, momentarily blinding it. With the werewolf temporarily distracted, Kendra seized the opportunity to plunge the dagger into the only vulnerable spot she could see, which was just on the underside of its belly. The werewolf let out a howl of pain and with inhuman strength, delivered a great blow to Kendra, sending her entire body crashing into the hard metal of the dumpster. Kendra lay there, briefly winded, silently praying that the werewolf would be too injured to pursue the attack. Lifting her head, she was surprised to notice that she was in fact alone in the alley. The werewolf had run off.

Rising to her feet, Kendra gritted her teeth as pain coursed through her right arm. It had taken the brunt of the impact from the dumpster. Her eyes darted over to the back door of the shop where Demeana still stood, eyes huge. Demeana tentatively put her hand on the doorknob and slowly opened the door. "Is it safe?" she asked. Kendra nodded, certain the werewolf was gone.

Demeana rushed out into the alley and instantly put a hand on Kendra's shoulder, checking her for injuries. "You're hurt," she stated.

Kendra winced as she moved her right arm, trying to ascertain the damage. "I'll live," she replied.

Scanning the alley, she noticed a trail of blood leading away from the Magic Shop. _Nothing more dangerous than a wounded animal_, she thought gravely. "I have to go," she declared, shying away from Demeana's touch.

"I know," responded Demeana softly.

Something about the way the older woman looked at her made Kendra pause for a moment. There was an intensity and wisdom in her gaze. There were unanswered questions here, Kendra was sure of it. But they would have to wait. She disregarded whatever she was sensing and ran after the werewolf, following the trail of blood.

Running through the streets, Kendra pondered upon what she would do once she found the werewolf. Would it be much of a match for her now that it was injured? Rounding a corner, she noticed the trail of blood leading into one of the local cemeteries. Hopping easily over the fence, Kendra ran on the soft grass trying to notice the droplets of blood amongst the blades. And even though she knew that the werewolf was further away, she slowed her pace to a cautious walk. Something, some feeling in her stomach had decelerated her stride.

As she walked further through the cemetery, she began to hear the sound of snarling, but also the sound of voices discussing. Rounding a corner, Kendra quickly ducked behind a large tombstone upon briefly seeing the werewolf surrounded by a gang of vampires. She surveyed the scene cautiously from her vantage point, her head discreetly peeking out from the side of the tombstone. She counted four vampires around the werewolf. They appeared to be arguing about something.

"You pull it out," said one vampire.

"No, you do it," said another.

"I ain't going near that thing," exclaimed a third vampire.

"Enough!" came a voice.

Kendra shifted her gaze to the origin of the commanding tone. Her heart skipped a beat once she recognized the fifth vampire. He took a long haul of his cigarette and exhaled slowly.

"I don't have time for this bullshit," he stated matter-of-factly. Flicking his cigarette at the closest vampire, he said, "You. Do it! Or tomorrow you're gonna take up sunbathing."

The vampire nodded with fear and slowly approached the werewolf. In one swift motion, the vampire reached out for the dagger, grabbed the hilt, and pulled the weapon free. He smiled smugly at the rest of the vampires, having, in his estimation, accomplished his task.

"Now that wasn't so bad, was-" But before Xander could finish his sentence, the werewolf, in a frenzy, swiped at the vampire viciously, taking its head along with it. The body and the head instantly turned to dust. The three remaining vampires backed away from the werewolf as it looked upon them coolly. The werewolf turned to fully face the other vampires.

Lacking the never of the other two, one turned and ran away as fast as his undead feet could carry him. Having been relieved of its previous torment, the werewolf eagerly ran off into the night in pursuit of this new prey.

Xander walked over to the pile of dust and picked up the lonely dagger. "Interesting," he remarked, looking upon the dagger as if it would divulge some hidden secret. Momentarily forgetting the weapon, he looked at the two remaining vampires disgustedly. "Let's go. The Master won't be happy with this."

As the three of them began to walk away, Kendra let out the breath she had not even realized she had been holding. Just as she was about to rise from behind the tombstone, Xander stopped dead in his tracks.

"What is it boss?" asked the vampire on his left.

No answer came from him. He could sense something. Something familiar, yet not at the same time. A scent on the wind perhaps? He turned in the direction of Kendra's position just as she fully tucked her head behind the tombstone. Consciously this time, she held her breath. She heard him take a step in her direction. _No, please no_, she thought. She could not move without giving herself away.

"Boss?" asked the vampire again.

"Nothing," responded Xander, his eyes not confirming what he was sensing. "Must be my imagination," he said, walking away, disregarding the feeling in the pit of his stomach.

As soon as she knew that they were gone, Kendra rose from her hiding spot. Her mind was racing with many unanswered questions. _Why would the Master be interested in a werewolf?_ As far as she knew, vampires usually wanted nothing to do with werewolves and regarded them as mindless animals. _Maybe I should follow them. They could lead me to their lair._ But if Xander could possibly sense her in some way, there would be no way she could track them safely. She needed to regroup and consider her options.

In the distance, Kendra heard a man's scream followed by a howl. Kendra smiled, content to know that the werewolf had caught its undead prey. Hopefully the werewolf would be satisfied with that kill. Like any animal, it would not eat more that its fill. Still, she would do a quick, cautious sweep of the town.

Finding no one about after sweeping the town twice, Kendra figured that maybe the werewolf had indeed had its fill for the night. She took a shower upon returning to Angel's apartment.

Disregarding the math homework she was supposed to finish tonight, Kendra lay down on her cot, replaying all the events that had transpired that night. _So the Master wants to get his hands on this werewolf. But why? What possible reason could there be for this course of action? _She needed to prevent them from capturing this werewolf. Not only for the sake of this town, but also for the sake whoever this werewolf was.

Mr. Zabuto had always stressed the importance of remembering that twenty-eight days out of the month, a werewolf was a regular person. His own son had been afflicted by the curse before Kendra had been born. Mr. Zabuto had done extensive research on the phenomenon, using his son as a subject, and had been considered an expert in the field. His son had bravely suffered for a few years until his secret had been whispered into the village where they were living. An angry mob had held Mr. Zabuto back while they executed his son, who had always been safely chained up during the full moon.

As Kendra drifted off to sleep, she could hear Mr. Zabuto's words from when she was but a child echoing in her mind: "Always remember that a werewolf is a person who is cursed with a disease that presents itself once a month. The only way to acquire this disease is through a bite from another werewolf. Now, whether or not the person is in wolf form does not matter. The disease is always transmittable though bodily fluids…"


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Twelve**

The sound of the school bell permeated every inch of Sunnydale High, signaling the end of the day. The teenagers filed out of the classrooms in throngs, chattering away about their plans for tonight and the rest of the weekend.

Kendra exited her English class and headed for her locker, still contemplating this new turn of events. She only had a few hours until sundown to come up with a plan to deal with the werewolf, and Xander, who for some reason wanted to get his hands on it. _Of course, it would be ideal if I knew who, in fact, the werewolf was_, she thought to herself. _But it could be anyone._ If she knew who the identity of the werewolf was, then she could deal with the person before he or she transformed. But where could she possibly hold this person once they had changed into a werewolf? She had no cage to put a werewolf in. Kendra considered the buildings in Sunnydale. _Maybe if I had scouted ahead of time…_

"Hello! Earth to Kendra!" came a voice.

Kendra focused her gaze on the source of the voice, momentarily leaving her unsettling thoughts. She was now face to face with Cordelia and her groupies. She had been seriously lost in thought else she would have noticed Cordelia Chase coming from a mile away. _I don't have time for this,_ thought Kendra as she remembered the approaching sunset. Nevertheless, she put on a bright smile. This whole exchange could not last longer than a couple of minutes, if one knew the depth of Cordelia's conversations.

"Oh, sorry, Cordelia. I was just thinking about…" _werewolves and vampires again _"… how much work I have to do this weekend."

Cordelia shook her head at Kendra, obviously disappointed. She spoke gently and patiently to her, as if speaking to a child, "My dear, dear Kendra. The weekend isn't for doing homework. It's for shopping, sleeping in, hitting the Bronze, and trying to get invites from college boys to their wild parties. Now if you would just slap on a little lip-gloss ― Whoa! Oz, what happened to your face?"

Everyone turned to see Oz walking by them, looking, as always, the picture of cool. But Kendra could sense that he was somewhat uncomfortable with all the sudden attention. What was also strange was that he had a large bandage covering his forehead.

"Oh, that," he said, pointing to the bandage. "It's a pretty embarrassing story. I tripped over some cables during our jam session last night and hit my head on a table."

The sheep began to giggle, but Cordelia merely looked confused. "Jam session? But Mark and Brad were at the Bronze last night."

Oz opened his mouth to respond but seemed to hesitate. Cordelia's question was valid, though. Kendra was well aware that Mark was the lead singer of the band that Oz played bass in, Coyotes Ate My Baby. Plus, Brad was the drummer. How could they have a jam session without the drummer and lead singer?

Lowering his voice, Oz finally answered Cordelia: "Listen, don't tell the guys, but I've been jamming with another band." He leaned in and said in a conspiratorial tone so that only she could hear, "I've got my eye on the lead guitarist." And he gave Cordelia a knowing wink. Kendra heard the exchange anyway.

Cordelia immediately understood Oz's meaning. Taking mental note of this information that could possibly be useful at a later point in time, she refocused on her would-be protégé. She had attempted to take Kendra under her wing, but the girl was somewhat resistant. Cordelia knew that she had to be patient with her. She had been home-schooled after being adopted from an orphanage in Jamaica at the age of 10. Essentially, as Kendra had explained it, she had lived alone with her parents, in the swamp, without television or any real exposure to pop culture. Ordinarily, Cordelia would not even bother with such an obvious lost cause, but there was an air about the girl that made Cordelia recognize that she could not pick on her like some of the other 'losers' at school. And judging by the outfit Cordelia had first seen her in at the Bronze and what she wore at school, Cordelia knew that Kendra had a better eye for fashion than most of the girls at Sunnydale High. Besides, she was almost like a blank slate; a piece of clay that she could mold in her own image. And, most importantly, she had an incredibly hot brother. Kendra had shared with her that he had gone on a trip to visit some friends in India for a few weeks. Cordelia tended to ask Kendra every now and then a couple of questions about her brother, but Kendra had very little to say. She explained this lack of knowledge as being due to the fact that Kendra's parents had not really gotten along with their son, Angel. She had briefly met him once before her parents died and then she was forced to move in with him.

Kendra could feel Cordelia's eyes on her, but ignored them because she, in fact, could not take her own eyes off of Oz. She was alarmed by this story of his.

Cordelia also took mental note of the look that Kendra was giving Oz. _Is it possible she heard what Oz said to me? Why is she looking at him that way? Then again, it's no secret that they've been spending time together. Maybe she doesn't like it that he's been checking out some other girl._ Cordelia looked into Kendra's eyes for hints of jealousy, but was uncertain of what exactly was on the other girl's mind.

Kendra in the meantime was inwardly troubled by Oz's behaviour. She was absolutely certain that he was lying about his whole story. Granted, she had only known Oz for a few weeks but she had never seen him lie before. It seemed very out of character for him, which was what was so unsettling for her. _But why would he lie about how he got that injury?_ Something was also nagging at Kendra; something she could not quite remember.

Now, this whole interchange happened in a manner of seconds, so the sheep did not notice the subtleties of what had occurred between the three teenagers.

"Anyway, gotta get going," stated Oz, turning to leave. "Catch ya at the Bronze on Saturday?"

"Right," replied Cordelia with a smile.

"Later, Kendra," said Oz and he walked away.

Cordelia said her goodbyes after carefully informing Kendra about how it would be beneficial for her popularity to put in an appearance at the Bronze this Saturday. She had been mysterious enough to get the boys wondering about her, but if she put it off for too long, the boys would write her off completely. Kendra thanked Cordelia for her advice and continued on her way to her locker.

Kendra opened her locker and took out the work she needed to do this weekend. Stuffing her books into her bag, Kendra was distracted by how much Oz's lying bothered her. _I mean, it's not like I don't do my fair share of lying_. She recalled the fabrications she had had to come up with when talking to Cordelia about Angel. _But there was just something about it that just isn't sitting right with me_.

Closing her locker, Kendra headed to the library in search of some answers. It was logical to assume that Giles was somehow aware of what was going on with this werewolf business. He undoubtedly was the one who had circled the article about the "wild dogs."

As she came upon the library doors, they swung open and a girl carrying a stack of books nearly collided with Kendra. Kendra sidestepped out of the way and the girl stumbled. The books went flying into the air, but Kendra, in a flash, caught them all before they hit floor.

"Sorry about th-" began the girl, but she stopped in mid-sentence once she recognized Kendra's face.

"It's alright," replied Kendra. Locking gaze with the teenager in front of her, she handed the books back to her.

The redheaded adolescent could not keep the new girl's intense gaze and looked away hastily. Nervously tucking a strand of hair behind her ear with her right hand, she clasped the books tightly to her chest with her left and looked down at the ground. For some reason she could not explain, the new girl, Kendra, made her uncomfortable. It was not just that Kendra had mysteriously shown up at her home during the summer talking about vampires and Xander (that was just plain weird and even a little bit creepy). There was just something troubling about her that Willow could not put her finger on. There was some vibe she could not place.

"Thanks," mumbled Willow quietly and walked away.

_ Hmph_, thought Kendra. _I can't believe how fragile and weak of spirit she appears in this universe. I guess with the death of her best friend and without Buffy's strong presence to provide a backbone, it would make sense that her spirit would be so feeble._

Placing her hand upon the door, Kendra was about to enter but found herself hesitating. There was something at the tip of her brain that she knew she should remember; something important. A memory began forming in her mind. The vague memory turned into a conversation Kendra had had with Buffy after Kendra had returned to Sunnydale to help defeat Angelus:

Kendra and Buffy were discussing their adventures since they last saw each other. Even though personality-wise they were quite different, at the core, they were both Slayers—a bond that went deeper than blood. Kendra had recounted her defeat of the Voodoo master Simon LaGrange. LaGrange had killed an entire village and made the villagers (men, women, and children) his personal army of zombies. It had taken weeks of meticulous planning and strategizing between Kendra and Mr. Zabuto to defeat him. Buffy had been quite impressed with Kendra's account.

"Wow, you kicked an entire village of zombies' ass! That's awesome!"

Kendra was silent for a moment. Taking a deep breath, she responded, "Except that after we defeated him, Mr. Zabuto and I had to bury the bodies of that entire village. We were surrounded by so much death..." her voice trailed off as she recalled the carnage: the mutilated bodies of all the zombie villagers that had tried to stop her, the slain demon henchmen, and the bodies of the young women LaGrange had killed as part of some ritual sacrifice.

Buffy cleared her throat, trying to alleviate the tension. "Well, we haven't had anything quite as interesting as an army of zombies. But there was that incident with the evil baby eggs."

"Evil baby eggs?" repeated Kendra, momentarily forgetting about the violent imagery that had been flashing through her mind.

"Well, in high school we're given eggs to take care of for a week."

Kendra looked at Buffy quizzically. "You Americans have strange customs," she stated matter-of-factly.

"Don't I know it. I mean, the whole obsession with boy bands alone makes you wonder about us. Anyway, the assignment is supposed to simulate the experience of taking care of a baby."

Kendra looked at her confused. "Why would your school want to simulate that experience?"

"To tell you truth, the whole thing is a not-so-covert attempt to make us teenagers not want to have sex."

"Oh," said Kendra softly.

"I mean, they could just put up giant posters saying 'Sex is bad! Don't do it or else!'"

Kendra did not respond. She had noticed that her face felt suddenly very hot as soon as Buffy mentioned the s-word.

"Anyway, long-story-short, the eggs we were given actually had the babies of a bezoar."

This information caught Kendra's attention. "A bezoar?"

"And it gets better. So the babies hatch from their eggs and turn you into some kind of puppet from that movie, The Puppet Masters. Cordy, Giles, Willow, and my mother got taken over by those icky monsters. And to make matters even more wonderful, once the eggs hatched and latched on to people, they started making people carry out mother bezoar's plans to dig her up and unleash her on Sunnydale. Everyone except me and Xander was taken over by those nasty, crawly babies. Thankfully, yours truly managed to save the day."

"Did the bezoar put up much of a fight?"

"Nah, not really. It was more messy and slimy than anything else."

Kendra nodded, empathizing with the hazards of messy fights.

"Then there was the time I got turned into a rat," stated Buffy quite nonchalantly.

"Excuse me?"

"Well, Cordy and Xander had been seeing each other, but then she dumped him because he's not exactly popular. Xander, being the genius that he is, enlisted the help of Amy, our resident witch, to put a love spell on Cordelia. The spell backfired and instead made all the women, _except_ Cordelia, fall in love with him. Even my mother was trying to get in on the action. Can I just say, ew!"

"I see," said Kendra slowly.

"Amy and I were arguing over Xander, so she turned me into a rat."

"You don't seem very upset about it."

"Being a rat's not so bad. Besides, I had Oz looking after me."

"Oz?"

"Yeah, you didn't meet him last time. He's part of the gang now."

"You've let another civilian know that you are the Slayer?!" Kendra looked at Buffy crossly. She could not understand her attraction to having friends. In Kendra's mind, regardless of what sort of comfort they provided, friends were inevitably a liability.

"Relax, Xena," said Buffy. "Oz is Willow's boyfriend."

_ So that makes it okay?_, thought Kendra. _I don't understand how she can justify these things._ She knew that she could not scold Buffy. First of all, Buffy was older and most probably wiser, though Kendra would never have admitted it out loud. Secondly, it was not her place to scold her. She was certain that Mr. Giles could handle that task. _Did she just call me a "zeena"?_

"Besides," continued Buffy, "we found out about him before he really found out all about us."

" 'Found out about him'? What do you mean?"

"Well, we had a werewolf kinda terrorizing Sunnydale. It even attracted the attention of this jerk-off poacher named Cain. I sent him packing. Bended his shotgun in half." Buffy chuckled at her last comment before continuing. "Turns out that the werewolf was Oz. While visiting his relatives, his cousin Jordy bit him. Oz later found out from his aunt that Jordy was a werewolf too."  
"So, this boy, Oz, is a werewolf," stated Kendra. "I trust that you have found a suitable area to keep him from hurting anybody during his three lycanthropic nights."  
"Oh yeah," replied Buffy, "we've got it completely under control. We lock him up in a cage during the full moon and one of us keeps watch over him with a tranquilizer gun…"

Kendra drew back her hand from the door as the memory faded away. _Oz! Could he possibly be the werewolf in this universe as well?_ She thought back to her encounters with him over the past couple of days. _He has been acting strange and he did say that he needed to take care of something for the next couple of days! But how could this have happened? There was no werewolf during the last full moon and I've seen Oz every week for the past five weeks. He hasn't had any scratches or bites. Even if they were hidden, he expressed no discomfort any time I saw him. But he did have that bandage on his forehead today... The dagger! I slashed the werewolf over his left eye! But wait a minute. The wounds experienced by a werewolf don't remain once the werewolf has changed back to its human form... Unless the dagger was mystical in some way._

The more she thought about the situation, the more concerned Kendra became. _I have to get to him before he changes. But where can I put him? Buffy said that they used to lock him up in the library. But I'll have to get him there first. Where would he be now? I'll have to try his house first._ Kendra turned away from the doors and walked quickly down the hall.

Just before she rounded the corner, the doors to the library swung open and Mr. Giles emerged. He glimpsed Kendra turning the corner. He had noticed her pause in front of the library doors for a few seconds before she abruptly had turned around and walked away. _I wonder what she wanted_, he thought to himself. Looking down at his watch, he was startled to realize how late in the day it was. _I have to get to Oz before sundown._ And he strode off with a purpose.


End file.
